Rain, rain go away
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Details, page 2
Monday
Published since 1889 by the students of the University of Kansas
April 13, 1987
Vol. 97, No. 131
(USPS 650-640)
Kansas House, Senate recess
The state Legislature took a two and a half week recess Friday without finishing some of its homework, including several bills concerning money and programs for the University of Kansas.
By CHRISTOPHER HINES Staff writer
State lawmakers did, however, approve a state lottery, liquor by the drink and a bill prohibiting nuclear waste disposal in Kansas, before going into recess. Two weeks ago, the Senate threw out by four votes the death penalty, despite strong support from Gov. Mike Hayden.
“This year is exceptional in that so many bills are in conference and that so many issues are unresolved,” said State Rep. Jessie Branson, D-Lawrence. “This is becoming more so every year.”
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By JOSI
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Alan Hagman/KANSAN
The city hall in Mound City was built in 1868 and houses the old city jail.
Mound City retains small-town values,
-
Hope Pelton,
medical technician
Lawrence Red
Cross, adds
dilutant to a
blood transfusion
during the
AIDS testing
process. The
RTU which takes
about 4 hours,
involves an
animal and
body reaction.
Centers strive for safe blood
By Jennifer Wyrick
public health officials from the Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, said two weeks ago that it would be wise for people who had received multiple blood transfusions from 1978 to 1985 to consult with their physicians and be tested for the AIDS virus.
During the last two years, the American Red Cross has instituted three programs in an ongoing effort to provide the safest blood supply possible. The programs involve two more sophisticated tests for the AIDS antibody, a detailed AIDS questionnaire and a "Look Back" program for people who've had blood transfusions.
In March 1985, the American Red Cross Blood Services added a laboratory test for donated blood.
The Red Cross tests each
donated unit of blood for hepatitis B and syphilis. Since March 1985, it also has tested blood for the antibody to the AIDS virus, said Jo Byers, Douglas County Red Cross chapter executive.
A period of about a month exists before the antibodies that the test recognizes actually develop, Byers said. This "window of opportunity" may lead to misleading results that indicate a person is free of the AIDS virus.
In other words, some infected blood can come into a blood bank, especially if the donors live in cities such as New York, San Francisco or Miami. Those cities are considered high-risk areas because they have a high reported incidence of AIDS.
In addition to the AIDS antibody test, the Red Cross instituted a new donor questionnaire
"This is why the Red Cross questionnaire is so important," Byers said. "It lets us know that there still might be a possibility that the donor could transmit AIDS because he or she is in a high-risk group, even though their test was negative."
In the past, donors answered a limited number of questions about their sexual history. Questions about AIDS symptoms have been a part of the health history survey since 1983, but the new questionnaire is much more specific as to high-risk AIDS groups. It also gives people an opportunity to protect their privacy while protecting the blood supply.
Prospective donors have time to read the explicit questionnaire in private and to check one of two boxes: "I believe my blood (or plasma) is safe for transfusion to
Donors do not sign the form.
another person," or "My blood (or plasma) should not be transfused to another person."
Doctors do not sign the form it does not even read the completed questionnaire. A computer code number is the only identification placed on the questionnaire, which is used only to help identify a specific unit of blood if the donor indicates the blood should be destroyed.
Red Cross officials in the region expect few people to exclude their blood from the local system, compared to areas on the east and west coasts.
"We're very fortunate in this part of the country. Our blood donors are healthy and they do not want to threaten a safe blood supply," officials said recently in a regional Red Cross report.
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14
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KANSAN MAGAZINE/April 10, 1987