Autologous 1-10new

Giving blood for your own use is a decision unused units. If the autologous units are not that will be made by you and your physician. used by the patient, the units will be discarded The term for this process is autologous donation. The following information is Why can I donate for myself more often than designed to help you make the decision that I can as a regular donor? Guidelines from the AABB allow autologous donors to donate with lower hemoglobin (red blood cell) levels than regular donors. Your hemoglobin will be If you are healthy enough to donate blood, your checked before each donation. To maintain blood can be the safest blood for you to receive. your hemoglobin, your surgeon may prescribe Receiving your own blood ensures that the blood is compatible and eliminates the risk of most Can I donate for myself if I have a history of heart disease or stroke? Only if your How do I become an autologous donor? cardiologist or internist complete and sign a Your physician must complete and sign an Donor Suitability Release Form. A Carter Autologous Request Form. Once your form is appointment at a Carter BloodCare Donor Center listed on back. Your age, weight and medical Will you test my blood? Each donation is history may determine your eligibility to donate. tested for infectious diseases such as hepatitis and HIV. If your donation is unsuitable for How soon should I donate before surgery? transfusion, Carter BloodCare will notify you, You may donate blood up to 30 days prior to your physician and the hospital. We will not your surgery and no less than five days before How can I be sure that I will receive my own blood? A special identification tag and bar code is attached to your donation to reserve for your donate again? If you received blood, you will use. A special form is also sent to alert your hos- not be eligible to donate again for 12 months pital of your donation. Please know that hospitals after your transfusion. If you did not receive and physicians do not inform Carter BloodCare blood, you may not donate until six weeks after of whether or not you required blood. Your physician’s office will have this information. What if my donated units are unused? Because each autologous donation requires extensive preparation, Carter BloodCare is not able to refund processing and handling fees for that a patient’s insurance plan covers the costs donation is special for the patient it benefits. F Completed Autologous Request Form However, special donation is a term blood To make an autologous donation, you must centers use in reference to two types of provide Carter BloodCare with an Autologous Request Form, completed and signed by your F Donor Suitability Release Form (required for • Autologous donation is the blood you physician. You can donate Monday through patients with a history of heart disease, stroke Friday at a Carter BloodCare Donor Center. • Directed donations are given specifically F Proof of Social Security number and a valid Will my health insurance cover autologous donations? Insurance providers typically will autologous donation? Autologous donation is not cover the cost for autologous donations considered elective, except under specific F Payment for autologous donation will be that are not transfused. Because insurance circumstances. Because autologous donations required at the time of your visit. Carter plans change frequently, Carter BloodCare require additional processing apart from the cannot confirm insurance coverage. If you are community blood supply, donors are charged services via money order, cashier’s check or interested in special donations, please con- for processing, collecting, testing, preparation tact your insurance provider to learn how your autologous donation ranges from $270 to $300* and is required at the time of donation. Will my insurance plan cover the blood that is taken from the community blood supply? Medicare, Medicaid and Workers’ Compensa- Carter BloodCare provides transfusable blood tion patients are not required to pay at the time F Eat a low fat, well-balanced meal within two supply. These units are industry standard and also covered or partially covered by many autologous donation is required at the time of donation and is payable to Carter BloodCare via money order, cashier’s check or travelers F Allow one hour for your donation appoint- directly with insurance companies, we will F Allow two hours for your appointment for a Do I need insurance pre-approval or a physician referral to proceed? Although hospitals accept autologous units from Carter BloodCare for patients, they will not confirm

Source: https://iwebb.carterbloodcare.org/hosp_orders2/service/forms/Auto.pdf