Community Blood Services

Good place to donate blood. They'll keep calling til you show up

Their employees were very rude. They also open later than they claim. My appointment was scheduled for noon. They didn't even open their door until 12:20pm. My plasma donation took about twice as long as they said it would. I got to watch a dreadful movie on DVD. They acted like they were doing me a huge favor. They were busy chatting about their next tattoos. Then I was treated to a stale supermarket doughnut with a small can of warm juice. One of their people called me eight weeks later to lay a guilt trip on me that they needed donors. They could not have cared less that I was caring for a seriously ill loved one and could not fit blood donation into my schedule. They send frequent emails. That is tolerable because that is not very intrusive. I abhor their guilt trip phone calls. I politely requested that they refrain from calling me, but the calls persisted. They do have a gift program for donors. The gifts are rubbish and that is not why I donate. I now donate blood with the Red Cross.

If you can find a different facility, use it. They're the slowest in Paramus, you have to wait for a very long time, EVEN WITH AN APPOINTMENT. Go elsewhere.

I have donated platelets 85 times, 33 in Paramus. Each time I say to myself "I'm helping to save a life today". Yes it takes time, sometimes it gets backed up, especially when people are "motivated" to give blood by getting a gift card. And on those days the staff does get overwhelmed, but never cuts a corner. Bottom line, the place has always been clean, the staff always returns my smile with a smile and they have never missed my vein. The people who need platelets or blood didn't ask for their condition, and I'm sure they are inconvenienced far more than any donor ever is. Bring a book and be thankful you can choose to be on this side of the inconvenience.