Blood Donor American Red Cross Reviews

I have donated blood and my blood donation isn’t even in BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . I completed the rapid test a few hrs before my appt. it never went through. So when I got the the site I had to re-do it. Why have these features if none of them are going to be filled out or work correctly. My blood donation, appointments, blood type and so on have not been added. I have filled out the section that’s asks if your donations are here and to fill out the information again and it will be updated 24-36 hrs. I did this twice so far. The first time, was 3 days ago. I did it again today. Why ask if the donations are incorrect if the American Red Cross isn’t going to update your information?? I even deleted BloodDonorAmericanRedCross , thinking there was an issue, but, that wasn’t it. We help to save lives because we want too. An app like this can be fun to look at if all the correct info on giving blood is well updated. My husband’s is well filled out, he can see his blood type, when he’s donated, how much he’s donated, and she. His next appt. will be. Me, I have none of that. Hugely disappointed.

It’s great for saving time by being able to answer all the questions via RapidPass before going to donate. It could be useful for other things but so much about BloodDonorAmericanRedCross seems off or unnecessary. The digital donor card would be great for me to show a history of BP readings. Unfortunately, it shows only the last three readings, and if you have it show the full history, the only information shown is the type of donation, date, and location (full history of BP, pulse, and hemoglobin IS available on the website). Consistency of information would be good here. The Blood Journey is interesting but would be more so with a little more information and if it were more up to date (right now doesn’t have the info from my donation of over 3 months ago). And although I figured out that the Blood Journey is showing the donations in reverse chronological order, why isn’t the full date (showing the year) displayed? Most other informational features are unnecessary once you’ve donated once or twice, and the badges are lame. I’m a Power Red donor so only need to use this three times a year, so instead of bogging down my phone I use it on my iPad. Only got it for the benefit of seeing the Blood Journey, and have been waiting to see some improvements but have yet to be rewarded. I may just forgo the little information I do get about the Blood Journey (only available through BloodDonorAmericanRedCross ) and just go back to using RapidPass on the website.

Two stars may be a little harsh, but there seems to be a major flaw in the user experience here. When searching for available appointments, there should be an option to “show next available” or “only show available” in the list of locations. As it is, I’m stuck searching through weeks worth of location listings, the vast majority of which show no availability once opened. What’s the sense in listing locations and dates with no availability? Seems as though BloodDonorAmericanRedCross is first and foremost an appointment scheduling tool, and it falls way short in that regard. I’ve been trying for weeks now to set an appointment to donate - just too frustrating to individually sort through endless entries that don’t actually have any availability. On the upside, guess that means lots of people donating these days which can’t be a bad thing!

When searching for an appointment to donate blood, BloodDonorAmericanRedCross asks for date range, time of day and location area. It then searches and returns a list of results. But the results it returns include (or in my case, are exclusively) unavailable days and locations. In other words, when I get search results for a Power Red donation any day over the next 14 days, any time of day, near my location, I tap on each result, and it tells me there are no appointments available for that day and to search again. So what’s the point of searching? Why do search results list unavailable days? If I’m searching for an appointment, why show me all the times that are NOT available?
Other than this, as other reviewers have noted, it should be easier to get info on types of donations.

What’s great: The profile contains a lot of interesting information. The badges are a great, fun way to get people motivated to give! BloodDonorAmericanRedCross opens and functions really well. You can quickly and easily move from page to page.

What’s not so great: Accessing information about all the different types of blood donation, requirements, and general blood donation tips and concerns ARE NOT EASY TO FIND. I was curious what a “Power Red” donation was. My friend looked it up on google, read the answer, and I still had not found it in BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . Finally after tunneling through several pages I found a list outlining the different types of donations. This shouldn’t happen. You should be able to access this information from several points. Maybe where it gives you the date when you can next donate (tap the box that has the name of donation method— you’re taken to an information on method. Perhaps being able to access this information from the badges section of BloodDonorAmericanRedCross would be another way to find it.

I’m a 70 time donor to Red Cross.

One of the perplexing things about blood donation is how much time it takes to get ready to donate, then the actual blood draw takes 5 minutes. Rapidpass is a huge improvement, but it relies on ppl telling the truth about travels, sexual activity, etc. Red Cross and the FDA already recognizes this and put blood through intensive lab testing for quality control, so why ask the questions in the first place.

Same is true of all the identity monitoring. Why do they need to know one’s name address and birthdate, and repeat it over and over? I finally forced them to stop asking for my SSN which they had insisted they needed.

A few bottom lines here:
- I don’t trust Red Cross (any more or less than any other outfit) with my info.
- ARC should decline to ask for info they don’t need; not having it means they aren’t responsible for safeguarding it.
- Given the shortage of blood, ARC and the FDA need to come to grips with the basic notion of how easy it is to not give blood. It’s easier and more convenient to not do it than it is to do it. Given this uphill difficulty to enlist new donors and keep old ones, they need to make it as easy and convenient as possible.

I use BloodDonorAmericanRedCross to schedule platelet appointments, but it is often glitchy and frustrating to use. This particular time, after choosing a day/time/location for donating, the log-in page wouldn’t load no matter what I tried. So I closed BloodDonorAmericanRedCross and started all over again, only to find that the appointment I was trying to schedule HAD been confirmed — even though I hadn’t “logged in” which was described as a required step. Confusing, but typical.

The previous time I tried to schedule a same-day appointment. Three time slots were available, but BloodDonorAmericanRedCross wouldn’t confirm any of them so I called the scheduling department and was told (after a lengthy delay) that the staff didn’t want to stay around for the last two open times. So why were they shown on BloodDonorAmericanRedCross ???

It’s been explained to my by Red Cross personnel as all encompassing, however, it falls short in several key areas.
Useful for:
*my donor card
*viewing donation history
*viewing upcoming appointment (made online - see below)

Not useful for:
*Finding nearby drives on certain date range needs more flexibility.
*Booking appointments was cumbersome and I gave up (search is clunky, results are limited). I much prefer website functionality.
*Badge alerts popped up, however, there isn’t a summary screen where I can view them. I want to see my vampire badge and post it to my social media! It vaporized! Where can I see them? Reps at the drive could not find them either. This could be such a fun, motivating feature if I could see them.
*Rapid Pass - I completed it online yet BloodDonorAmericanRedCross didn’t “know” thus prompted me to do it again; there was no synchronization with my account which perplexed me since it “knew” about my appointment... I had to present the email version Rapid Pass.

Based on past issues with other Red Cross systems being out of synch, such as phone recruitment within days of a donation, I’m not surprised by the hiccups. However, it does significantly reduce the utility of BloodDonorAmericanRedCross for me and makes it tough to justify the storage space.

Really appreciate the Rapid Pass to speed the process!
Enhancement opportunities.
Smart scheduling feature should auto suggest the date 8 weeks after the last scheduled appointment, if it’s within the 8 week window, otherwise use today or next 14 days, or the next day of the week from previous appt.
Also, after my donation today (in Nov), I tried to schedule my next one, but BloodDonorAmericanRedCross would not allow scheduling past Dec, it kept going back to today’s date. I finally realized I had to flip to next year (I’m scheduling a Jan appt 8 weeks from now). Recommend updating the UX to make it easier (such as auto update the year when scrolling past Dec, or an alternate date picker like a calendar view). An updated smart scheduling feature, above, should also reduce issues like this since the system would auto select.

I really enjoy the aesthetics and utility of BloodDonorAmericanRedCross , but I wish my blood pressure data, iron concentration, hemoglobin, pulse, etc. were integrated into Apple HealthKit automatically.

Also, the badges aren’t very interesting. The only ones I pay attention to represent the total volume donated. If there aren’t cooler badges imaginable, it might be better just to remove the badges entirely (which take up a TON of real estate in BloodDonorAmericanRedCross ) and just track volume milestones.

Also, the layout of BloodDonorAmericanRedCross doesn’t make much sense. Why, for instance, does the profile page contain “start rapidpass”, but your team is selected on a different page? And why is there a “me” tab within impact when there’s already a profile tab? It seems a better way to organize BloodDonorAmericanRedCross would be with a Profile tab (which contains your history and health data, your blood journey, your team’s rank, your milestones/badges, and your donor card), and then a Book Donation tab (which has RapidPass, the date your next eligible to donate, suggested donation options, etc.

One more thing, the notification settings it says I have are wrong. I messaged STOP when I was getting SMS’s from the Red Cross, but BloodDonorAmericanRedCross said that I had sms notifications turned on.

First off, I LOVE to donate blood, and this is a great app to keep me motivated. It allows you to book appointments, see your donation history, and even earn badges to keep you motivated. BloodDonorAmericanRedCross is very useful. However, it could use more programming to turn a great app to an AMAZING app. First, we need to be able to complete the RapidPass via BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . Second, there needs to be more badges. Third, more connectivity to social media so we can share our pride for giving and hopefully inspire others. And fourth, more interactive tracking of the blood donations. I love knowing where my donation goes! Again, this is a GREAT app already, but wish it had a little more.

Under Donation History, it currently displays blood pressure, hemoglobin, and pulse from the last donation. For people who donate platelets such as myself, I would suggest adding platelet count (the number that is supposed to be 150 or higher) and platelet yield (the percent that is supposed to be around 7 or higher). I have shown up at the donation site to donate platelets a few times, only to be told that my previous count or yield was low and was told that I needed to re-schedule at a later date. I was given those numbers at that time, but I could have avoided wasting the donation sites time (and mine) if I could have checked myself beforehand. Since the number is in the record, it must be in your database, so I am suggesting that it also be added to the display in BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . Thank you.

BloodDonorAmericanRedCross is informative, helpful, and easy to use! Moreover, I was pleasantly surprised at how easy and painless it is to donate blood! The rapid pass also helps speed up the process. I wish I would have donated sooner knowing how much it helps so many people. However, I was turned away in my college years due to “small veins” and figured I wasn’t a candidate. I am so glad I went back! I am a nurse, and have worked in many areas. Having worked in Intensive Care, I have seen first hand how much blood is needed and used! BloodDonorAmericanRedCross keeps track of my donations and how often I can donate as well as other helpful tools like; preparing for donation, blood type, and Rapid Pass. I will definitely be doing my part by donating as often as able now that I’ve experienced how easy it is and how much it saves lives! (I’ve had blood draws more painful and timely than this experience!) So grateful I was asked to donate! I hope I can encourage more people to do their part and donate! Thanks for all you do, ARC! ❤️

I have been donating blood for awhile now. I love having the chance to be able to save someone’s life, and make a difference for other people. The process to donate whole blood is that not long a good 30minutes and that is it, next is Plasma for me. You feel great after, and the Red Cross does a great job making you feel at ease, no pressured into doing things you don’t want to do. BloodDonorAmericanRedCross is great, easy to manage. The only downfall to BloodDonorAmericanRedCross is when you have your appointment the day of, I wish you could be able to see the location of were it is at instead of taking screenshots, I’m not very good with directions. Lol, well worth it!!

Giving Blood is a Great thing to do because it’s saving lives & helping those in need! BloodDonorAmericanRedCross allows you to know when you’ve donated, when you can donate again, how many times you’ve donated, along with what you donated. As well as locations near you to go to when you can donate again & allows you to see if you’ve had COVID Antibodies to know if you’ve had the Virus or been asymptomatic. It’s a Great app to know the road you’ve traveled in helping others & will let you know where & when your blood was taken too & its journey! It’s great to know that you’ve donated blood, but to know when you’ve helped someone & to know where it went to & when is a Great Feeling! Get BloodDonorAmericanRedCross & Donate Today!!!

The American Red Cross has put together an excellent app that allows you to schedule a blood donation appointment, check your eligibility and review your history of donation. Everything you need to know about eligibility and donation is provided on BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . In addition, for a limited time, they are testing for COVID-19 antibodies and providing your results with your permission on BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . I also love that they show where (for me St Catherine’s Hospital) your blood donation ends up being used. I also appreciate that BloodDonorAmericanRedCross allows you to schedule a donation based on a location, date and time that is convenient for you. If your schedule changes, it is also easy to reschedule your appointment. ARC sends out plenty of reminders too so that you don’t forget. Truly an outstanding app!

Where do I begin? BloodDonorAmericanRedCross is awesome I can see what my bp, hemoglobin, pulse, etc all from the day I donated. I thought it would hurt but it didn’t hurt at all. Trust me I’m not a fan on needles but I loved how kind everyone was and I just kept thinking I could be saving a life or more. I also like that I can see my blood type, how much I donated, I can join a “team”, schedule another appointment, and I absolutely love seeing where the blood is donated. Normally I hate notifications from other apps but I love getting to see the notifications. I find all of the notifications interesting. I recommend donating blood and if you ever think about wanting to do it and if you don’t like it once that’s ok at least you got to the experience!

18 years ago just a few weeks after I had my last daughter, I began to hemorrhage really badly. When the ambulance arrived , and the EMT’s were assessing my situation, I remember hearing one of them say that I needed a blood transfusion right away. They said that I was in dire need of a blood transfusion to save my life. I praise God and will forever be thankful and grateful that someone chose to donate blood so that it was there when I was the one in need. Donating our Blood, Platelets and Plasma is a very important and honorable thing that each of us can do for others , as well as ourselves. We have no way of knowing that we may very well end up being the one that needs a blood transfusion at some point in our lives. So if we are physically and medically able, I truly believe that it is our duty to donate blood products that can and does help save peoples lives.

This is a beautifully designed app with simple controls, fluid responsiveness, and low-user memory load. BloodDonorAmericanRedCross makes scheduling appointments easy and fun, and is the only reason why I donate as often as I do. The only improvement I’d like to see is more access to our health statistics sent to Apple’s Health app. This would add accurate and enriching data to log my health over longer periods of time. I like to think of my blood donations as mini checkups to spot potential health issues down the road, so it’d be amazing to see that data actually logged into the Health app. This data (blood pressure, pulse, hemoglobin, etc) is already displayed minimally when flipping the digital donor card to the history side, but I’d like it to be recorded forever to give me more accurate health data and make my donations even more valuable to me as a donor. Thanks!

I cannot believe BloodDonorAmericanRedCross currently only has 3.6/5 stars. Two things that would be nice to see: 1) please don’t show drives in my smart scheduling results that do not have open slots 2) love the “badges” and “impact” functionality it would also be really cool if BloodDonorAmericanRedCross offered some “donation tips” that would have general facts and FAQs but could also be tailored to users based on their blood type. For example I had an interesting little conversation with the person that was taking my blood last about how it would really impactful for me to be donating platelets due to my blood type. Little interesting facts like that could help guide people to maximize their donations. Keep up the great work!

You can create teams but then the members you try to invite can’t join! I am a board member for an organization and thought this would be an interactive way for our members to track our progress as a whole. I created the team but members can’t join when I invite them, I can’t control the basic “profile” of the team, I’m supposedly not allowed to add our logo to the picture for easier search access for our members (you know because people are likely to associate with a picture than scroll through and find a name), and every time I donate our team impact/lives changed number never changes. This potentially can be a very good interactive tool for groups to get involved, but until these basic things are fixed it will still lack and be sub-par.

I’ve been donating for 45 years and just hit the 100 pint mark. I like BloodDonorAmericanRedCross for the donor card and rapid pass. Impossible to find what my next eligibility date is. Put it right on the main screen! Making an appointment is a little weird but gets easier as one gets closer to eligibility date. Just tell me upfront when I’m eligible next and I’ll make an appointment as close to that date as I can. I don’t need a program to do it for me and I don’t need all the social media garbage. Just tell when I’m eligible next and where and when are the blood drives. Perfectly capable of the rest.
I will continue donating no matter what. The Red Cross is a phenomenal organization and it’s well worth the time and ever so slight inconvenience to donate. I wish everyone felt it was their personal responsibility to donate.

There’s a rewards section? Where? BloodDonorAmericanRedCross has issues. The Red Cross is aware of these issues and are working on them. For most uses, it works. I schedule all my donations on BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . The journey section now works. Rapid pass gives me a few issues, but I remind myself that I’m saving lives with each donation. For the most part, I’m happy with BloodDonorAmericanRedCross .
The reason for a 3 rating is:
1. Here in BloodDonorAmericanRedCross Store, BloodDonorAmericanRedCross has a rewards section. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen every section in BloodDonorAmericanRedCross and never seen a rewards section.
2. There are other issues with BloodDonorAmericanRedCross , but I know for a fact the Red Cross is working on them. These are known issues (not requests) and when these issues are fixed, I will change my rating.

I love BloodDonorAmericanRedCross . It makes it easy for me to book my appointments, complete my rapid pass and have my donor is ready to go. But I wish it would give me the info I need to prepare for a platelet donation. If newbies were looking to see what they need to do to get ready, they would think it was just like a blood donation because that’s the info they give when you click the “how to prepare for your donation”. Definitely needs to be updated with all the info we need. I know it’s easily accessible on the website, but just the sake for convenience, I think providing the correct information would be beneficial to everyone. Otherwise, I highly recommend BloodDonorAmericanRedCross for you to book your appointments and earn some badges for all the good you do in donating.

A nicely put together app. I very much appreciate the fact that it DOES NOT play with all the social media platforms. Not everything we do needs to be shared with everyone all the time. Thank you for that. However, what I would like to see is the option to add your donor card to the wallet on iPhones. Sometimes it’s easier just to open up the wallet widget and sort that way than it is to open an app. Plus, donors wouldn’t have to worry with reception issues at a donation center if their cell coverage is sketchy. Just open up the wallet and boom, there’s your donor card. Thank you!

Thank you for developing BloodDonorAmericanRedCross & getting it to be interactive and up to speed. I am hoping the appointments can be connected to the calendar, posting to Facebook and there can be an area to list medications in future application updates. The rapid pass could also ask questions with previous answers in mind. (ie. any changes since last donation? If I answered ‘no’ to questions about the 1980’s- I can never answer ‘yes’. Of course, this will have to change when time travel is invented.). Other than that- I love it and am proud & honored to give with or without an app.