Image source: http://bloodbanker.com/plasma/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/plasma_video09.jpg
You'd actually be surprised by how often a person can donate plasma for money. Before doing research into the subject of plasma donation, I had been under the impression that a person could only donate very infrequently at their local plasma donation center. And while different centers have different requirements, some centers allow a person to donate up to 2 times per week, as long as the donation times are evenly spaced apart. That surprised me, because I had never thought that the body could restore its plasma that quickly. If you're really interested in the requirements of your local plasma center, you should give them a call requesting more information.
Blood is a pretty amazing substance. It transports literally everything the body needs to the furthest reaches of the body through veins, arteries, and capilaries. Donating plasma is a different, more lengthy process than donating regular blood, and because of that, the recovery time is shortened. While donating plasma, only a small portion of the blood platelets are removed from the body and the blood itself, after being stripped of its plateles, it the put back into the body. There are different types of cells within the blood. Platelets are small cell structures that are most notably essential to the process of blood clotting, among other things. When you donate plasma, your blood is hooked up to a machine that filters out the platelets and then puts the blood back into the body. Because of this, it is much quicker for the body to rejuvenate and restore its platelet levels. Regular blood donation takes longer to fully recover from because an entire pint is generally taken from the donor, which is over 15% of the total blood supply in the body.
Platelet transfusions are usually given to people in the midst of chemotherapy and things like bone marrow transplant and organ transplant. Usually, multiple donars are used for one recipient. That's why plasma donors are usually welcomed heartily because platelet transfusions are used on a variety of different types of patients, and often multiple donors are used for each recipient. So if you're thinking about wanting to donate plasma for money often, it's good to know how often you can donate and what exactly the process is all about.
But in the process of donating plasma for money, you have to beware a few things. Each plasma center is different and might have different requirements and policies on payments. Sometimes a plasma center will want a person to donate a certain number of times before starting to pay them for the process, and different plasma centers offer different rates of payment for plasma. So before you make big plans for donating plasma on a regular basis, you should definitely contact your nearest plasma center and ask them some of those questions. You can also ask them how long the process generally takes and when the best hours are to do the process. If you show them that you're serious about wanting to donate, they may even set you up with regular appointments to cut down on the wait time and make the entire process go more smoothly. Best of luck.
