Blood banking is the process that takes place in the laboratory to ensure that the donated blood or blood products are safe, before they are used in blood transfusions and other medical procedures.
Blood banking includes typing the blood for transfusion and testing for infectious diseases.
The number of blood units donated is about 14 million a year. There are approximately 8 million volunteer blood donors. About 4 million patients receive transfusions of blood units each year. Each unit of blood is broken down into components, such as red blood cells, plasma and platelets. One unit of whole blood, once its separated, may be transfused to several patients, each with different needs.