mytest
Hi Blog. Just a quick one. Roy Berman at Mutantfrog translates the Japanese Red Cross’s regulations on who cannot donate blood in Japan. I can’t. So if you want to help bloodwise, check here first to make sure you don’t get disqualified for your trouble. Arudou Debito
http://www.mutantfrog.com/2011/03/13/who-can-and-can-not-donate-blood-in-japan/
10 comments on “Thinking of donating blood in Japan? Mutantfrog translates the regulations on who can’t.”
Debito, I imagine that you could do a great favor to readers overseas, if you put out the word on exactly what help people CAN give to the everyday people of Tohoku region.
Usually, in these crises (like 911 in America), the people of goodwill go to help, but they don’t know exactly what’s needed. As a result, the relief effort ends up with too much of some things, and not enough of others.
— My suggestion is donating to the International Red Cross.
Thanks Debito. I also can’t think of anything else people can due just right now other than donating money, and if in Japan possibly also blood. Last I heard-which was a few hours ago to be clear-they were not needing private donations of cloths, food, or other similar emergency supplies, but the situation could of course change.
People in the USA with cell phones can also donate via SMS according to the following:
“Text “redcross” to 90999 to make a $10 donation to the American Red Cross. Text “japan” or “quake” to 80888 to donate $10 to the Salvation Army. Text “4japan” to 20222 to send a $10 donation to the humanitarian group World Vision. The charges will appear on your cell phone bill.”
The Red Cross is of course the global preeminent disaster relief agency, and the Salvation Army and World Vision are both Christian organizations with good reputations for actually doing relief work. In my experience World Vision is particularly strong in Taiwan, which is of course right next to Japan, which might make them a good candidate for relief effort donations.
You can also donate to the Red Cross via the Apple iTunes store, which may be more convenient if you already have a credit card registered there.
https://buy.itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZFinance.woa/wa/buyCharityGiftWizard
Apple promises they will pass along 100% of donations to the Red Cross and waive their usual transaction fees.
You can also donate to the Red Cross through Google Checkout if you have an account there. The same Google page also includes many other disaster related resources, including links to their missing persons location service.
http://www.google.com/crisisresponse/japanquake2011.html
This one blocks me:
Anyone with a history of sex with anonymous partners
Over the past 50 years of my adult life, I am quite sure that I have had sex with people whose names and/or history I really can’t remember and probably never knew.
>Thanks Debito. I also can’t think of anything else people can due just right now other than donating money.
A slightly longer term idea would simply be, “please visit”. Japan’s economy is going to take a very severe hit from this disaster. As someone who works in tourism promotion for a region of Japan, I can tell you that there are genuine fears right now about a big collapse in the tourism industry. The hole that would be left by a decline in the revenue created by inbound tourists from abroad would be a double whammy on top of the already massive costs of the recovery operation.
You don’t have to go to the affected region. The debt of rebuilding is going to be shared by the entire country and taking a trip to anywhere in Japan will help.
I realize that debito.org is something of a hotbed of controversy and criticism of Japan and attitudes towards “foreigners”, but the vast majority of Japanese are very welcoming, very gracious hosts and you would be helping them enormously by staying in their hotels, eating in their restaurants and generally spending your money here.
A group of people I took to to go donate blood got turned away solely because they couldn’t read enough Japanese. There is a sheet that you have to check before giving blood which has a lot of complicated kanji on it (names of diseases etc.) and I had offered to interpret/translate but was told that “Unless the doctor can have full communication with the blood donor themselves then we cannot accept them”
Immediately after this the doctor pulled me aside and told me how desperate they were for blood but “Im sorry. It’s our procedure. It’s for the safety of the donor. I hope you understand.”
Loving the bureacracy.
So…men participating in homosexual behavior are not allowed? Well, I guess lesbians are safe.
５
Thats because you have to make sure the blood donor has no history of hepatitis or other disease. Different countries have different regulation when concerning medical check ups and required vaccines, so you can’t just accept blood from whoever
Would like to donate, but I’m gay so I’m out.
Unfortunately these rules pretty much eliminates anyone who was born in, or studied in, Europe.
1 Anybody who has spent a TOTAL of 30+ days in the UK between the years 1980 and 1996.
2 Anybody who has spent a TOTAL of 6+months in the UK between 1997 and 2004. (Note: Also include period of stay under category 1,3,4 in this total.)
3 Anybody who has spent a TOTAL of 6+ months in Ireland, Italy, Holland, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Germany, France, Belgium, Portugal, between the years of 1980 and 2004. (Note: Also include period of stay under category 1,2,4 in this
Yes, it is unfortunate, but nearly all international guidelines on blood donation restrict people that lived/worked/studied in the UK in the 1980s. From the US Red Cross website:
You are not eligible to donate if:
From January 1, 1980, through December 31, 1996, you spent (visited or lived) a cumulative time of 3 months or more, in the United Kingdom (UK), or
From January 1, 1980, to present, you had a blood transfusion in any country(ies) in the (UK).
Source: http://www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/eligibility-requirements/eligibility-criteria-topic
Interestingly, the UK Red Cross is *no longer involved* with blood donation, perhaps due to the mad cow disease outbreak in the UK?