I had blood donation at a GH blood drive set in my campus this late morning. Surprisingly I was the only donor then, so the entire process from registration to the end of the donation was pretty fluent without the need to queue.
I enjoy blood donation but there is one necessary step of it I never like – the finger-prick blood sampling, which the capillary blood is collected by lancing a finger. Typically, the medical assistant will cleanse the area to be pricked with an alcohol swab and then prick with a blood lancet. Ouch! I recall I was shocked by pain for the first time I did finger-prick because I was unprepared for the trigger mechanism of the blood lancet (I didn’t know how it works). Since then I have a little fear whenever dealing with it.
I proceeded to blood drawing after going through some examinations. The medical assistant first pressed on my elbow pit searching for my vein location. When it was found, she cleansed the skin on top with antiseptic and used a large needle to pierce it. My blood spurted out through the needle instantly.
I was given a rod to hold and squeeze repeatedly to increase the blood flow.
The drawing completed in less than 10 minutes and a pack of 450ml warm blood is ready to serve. 
