July 22, 2002

Sit back, relax, watch a little TV, surf the net, catch up on e-mail, give blood platelets ...

Phil Evans, a retired flower shop owner from Peabody, Mass., has donated blood platelets at the MGH Blood Donor Center for the past five years. Platelet donation can be a time-consuming procedure, but now the 2 1/2-hour donation process is made much easier for donors such as Evans thanks to a new device at the MGH called the E-Chair.

At right: Jeanette Arrighi of the MGH Blood Donor Center demonstrates the new E-Chair.

The E-Chair, which is provided to the MGH by Baxter Healthcare Corp., is a comfortable reclining leather chair with a connected laptop computer. The laptop gives donors the option of watching a DVD movie, playing computer games or listening to music. The chair also enables busy donors to set up a "virtual office" allowing them to send e-mails and use the Internet.

Evans, who was one of the first to use the E-Chair at the MGH, knows the importance of donating blood and platelets. He has been donating whole blood since 1940 and began donating platelets when his wife was undergoing heart surgery at the hospital. "I wish people could understand the importance of donating. It is one of the most generous things you can do for another human being," says Evans.

Platelet donation is accomplished through the process of pheresis. Whole blood is drawn from a donor's arm, platelets are separated from the blood – which consists of red and white cells, platelets and plasma – and the remaining blood components then are returned to the donor through the other arm.

"Platelets are important in treating patients with leukemia and other cancers, as well as sickle cell anemia," says Kim Cronin of the MGH Blood Donor Center. "A single donor can provide enough platelets for one or two transfusions, but we are always in need of more donors. That's why it is so important to improve the appeal to people who either don't have the time to donate or who think the process is unpleasant."

Although other hospitals around the country also use the E-Chair, the MGH is the first hospital in Massachusetts to offer the chair to its donors.

"I've been donating for many years, and this chair is remarkable," says Evans. "I had a great time watching a very funny movie and hopefully saved a life all at the same time. To me, that's a great day."

For more information about the E-Chair, contact the MGH Blood Donor Center at (617) 724-9699.