NY Blood Bank - Pat posted about it Tuesday - Another article

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In a message dated 98-10-21 23:55:27 EDT, you write:

<< " Blood Center Ads, Meant to Be Calming, Prove to Be Alarming "

New York Times (10/21/98) P. A28; Steinhauer,

An advertising campaign by the New York Blood Center designed to

make people feel safer about blood transfusions is causing

concern, prompting a flood of calls from fearful blood

recipients. The ads said that " there may have been a problem " in

viral testing of blood used for transfusions between January 1991

to December 1996 in New York hospitals and that blood recipients

" may face a potential risk of transfusion-transmitted infections,

such as HIV and hepatitis. " Executives from the center said that

the ads were supposed to be reassuring and were intended to

dispel any remaining fears regarding a situation a year and a

half ago in which two employees of the center were charged and

sentenced for creating false records, conspiracy, and blood

tampering. While the tampering has not been found to have caused

any diseases, the center wanted to offer an additional test to

any recipients of the blood. Dr. , president of the

center, said that the ad may have been worded in a confusing

manner, but he noted that people may have paid no attention to it

if a bland message had been used. said that the ad

campaign was timed to coincide with a Food and Drug

Administration campaign to warn people who received transfusions

prior to 1992 that they may be at risk for hepatitis C. >>