Octapharma Plasma

I am so glad I didn’t rely on the negative reviews below. I went in today as a new donor and the entire process, from start to finish, took 3.5 hours. The entire staff was so helpful and informative. When I got to the donation process, I started feeling light headed and dizzy after about 30 minutes. The staff took care of me right away and everyone continued to check on me up until I left. The level of customer service was spectacular!

Nothing like sitting for 1 hour and 40 minutes of testing and questions, to then be asked about my sex life in terms of «how many men I’ve had sex with, and in which months over the past 5 years» to then just be turned down flat. I know my HIV status and I’ve never been paid for sex thank you very much, even though they asked that question in an amazing 5 different ways. Be careful for homophobia or just strict harassment.

The new system they have is absolutely inefficient and takes 2 times longer than the older method I sat waiting for 2 hours to get my plasma taken when I got up and asked the phlebotomist they told me it’s a new system the whole vibe just felt very depressing and with lack of urgency

These people suck! It takes 4 hours to donate the first time, only one doctor handling physicals. They do not accept appointments, so really they do not have any regard for your time. Take the 250 on the first five and go to Scantibodies in El Cajon. Take advantage of another new donor premium. Once you donate 5 times at Octapharma, the are going to put you off for three weeks claiming that the lab in Texas does not have your results. This prevents you from collecting the bonus on the 5^th by the 19^th of the month, and eight for the month. The place is ghetto as hell, and filled with low life’s that for sure are lying about incarceration in the last 12 months. Stay Away! I almost forgot to mention that they screw with the money, 2 times of 5 donated, I had to stop back in twice and spend another 30 minutes on the phone to get it right.

The process went smoothly my first time. Checked in with proper identification, watched a video, got vitals taken, received a physical and then donated. Took two and a half hours first time, will be substantially shorter subsequent visits. Everyone was friendly and professional. If you’re above 150 lbs its 50 $ your first five visits and then it goes down. Still great for extra money!

All the staff was very professional and polite made me and my girl feel comfortable for our first time ever donating plasma. Good for extra money to add to the savings

Great place. Very friendly staff

Had a great experience today, went in a little nervous but came prepared knowing as much information as i could, it helped them do their job to help me in an easier manner. First time donar was in there for 3 hours expected 2 but after your first time you’re in there for about an hour to an hour and a half depending on your own health. drink water, avoid greasy foods night before will fasten this process.

The staff is super nice and always in a great mood. Never had a miss stick or anything. One gentleman, Alexander, the guy with the long hair, was such a nice very gentle cat he made my day by not ripping all my hair off removing the needle and tape.

First time takes a super long time! But it is a fun nice place, that is full of normal people and not just junkies or weirdos like most donation places.

OK.
This place is amazing except for one thing. But first the amazingness:
The good:
1. Easy (but lengthy) process to get into the system for first time donors.
2. The staff is exceptionally friendly despite the large amount of donors that roll through.
3. Good movies to keep you occupied and the building is never too hot. Actually, it gets pretty cold so bring a sweatshirt.
4. $ 50 a week if you are over 150lbs and come twice a week. Awwwww yeah!
5. There is a parking lot as well as free street parking so easy access to the building.
The bad:
The staff do not change gloves between donors. This… is worrisome to say the least. I asked about it and one of the staff members told me that it is against the rules to change their gloves unless they come into direct contact with someone’s blood, or if requested by a donor.
SO REQUEST THAT THEY CHANGE THEIR GLOVES! It really should be mandatory anyway but I was told that the company was trying to cut down on costs… so they don’t want to throw away a lot of gloves. But what about skin diseases??? What about the staff getting sick themselves or transfering a donor’s topical illness to EVERYONE THEY TOUCH?!? What about the blood on their gloves that they can’t or didn’t see? What about the bacteria that are small enough to get through the latex? Do the staff even wash their hands since they are wearing the same pair of gloves all day? Do they take off the gloves for lunch break, and then put that same pair back on afterwards because it’s more «cost efficient»? None of these questions would even be prompted if they would change their glove’s between patients. If I get a terrible disease from this place, the cost of doctor visits and treatments would faaaaaar out price the amount of money that I get from actually donating.
So there’s that. Otherwise I would give these place a HUGE thumbs up!
PLEASE go here! It’s an awesome and friendly place but just make sure to ask that they change their gloves before touching you or your blood/​plasma.

Best plasma place. Where else can you get your vitals taken for free, meet very generous and kind staff (as long as you mind your own manners), lay back with company watching movies and get paid out the door, all you got to do is stay awake!
The cash comes in seriously handy when money is tight, you are hungry, and bills have to be paid. I do enjoy the staff, they are very professional, hard working and would even stay there when you came less than a half hour before closing. Keep in mind you will meet and greet some «characters» there at times and most importantly STAY HYDRATED before you come for each visit. The more hydrated you are the faster you are out the door.
First of the month week is usually light and not alot of people there but come the next week people come running.

First time donating, they kept me waiting for two hours, took my vitals, pricked my finger, then rejected me for an honest answer about past illicit substance use (not IV, nothing that could affect my plasma, especially after over two years). Clearly half the people in the joint were drug abusers and the whole parking lot had shady characters milling about and smelled like marijuana, but I guess I learned my lesson: when «donating» (read: selling) plasma to a company in the pocket of big pharma, lie through your teeth like its a job interview being conducted by your grandmother. In short: don’t waste your time. And their Avengers DVD won’t play right.

It was my first time recently.
Farther down is a step by step for the first time.
The place was jam packed, and parking wasn’t so easy to find, but I was able to leave the waiting room and move my car to a close spot. It was busy for new donors so I waited a very long time until the majority of the process started. About 5 ¾ hours total for everything.
The movies playing helped, along with the courteous workers, but some of the donors made me want to pull my hair out. One guy tried starting a fight with about two or three others. I felt like it was middle school again.
Everyone worker I interacted with was great, 4 – 5 stars
The *****RN NICHOLAS was great. Nice guy. A little quite when speaking though. Knew what he was doing and made me feel comfortable.
Now for the guy poking my vein. *****GENGIS was great. Easy to talk to and made me feel at ease. If I were to rate him he would get 5 stars, hands down. I would keep this guy around if I were in charge.
It seemed chaotic when I started giving plasma, but calmed down about halfway through. I left feeling good about giving plasma here. Good job guys.
I’ve listed the process below… Forgive me if I’ve missed some things.
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Steps upon arriving for new donors:
1) sign in at desk
2)They need your two forms of ID and poststamped mail
2) after a while someone will call you up and give you their information manual
3) read the manual.
4) You will be taken to the back to watch a 14 minute video
5)Go back to waiting room.
3) wait… wait…wait…wait some more… wait…go to the bathroom… wait…wait…drink some water… wait…switch seats… wait some more
4)You’ll get called up to test your blood for protein and iron levels… maybe some other stuff. Your fingers will be tested to see if you were marked from other donation centers. Your weight will be measured… and I might be missing some other things.
5) You will now be in the system, so they take you back to lobby and have you sign in on their touchscreen computers (what you will do 1^st from now on)
6)Wait until called for physical
7) Go from physical room to the waiting area in the back, for donating (Where you watched the informational 14 min movie)
8) Get poked, give blood, get blood back, get saline to help replenish plasma. Movies are still playing while you donate. Pretty comfortable.
And you are done! First time is a beach. Expect the worst, to be pleasantly surprised.

I gave plasma at Octapharma in San Diego for approximately 6 months.
The first problem I had here was that the promotional extra payment for the second donation was not credited to me. When I telephoned Octapharma about this, the manager gave me the runaround by responding: «Next time you come here, then bring up the issue with the LAB.»! ! !
I responded: «What is the name and contact info of YOUR manager?» My asking her this question was what was necessary to motivate her to fix the problem — which she promptly fixed.
MORE problems:
Many of the phlebotomists automatically insert the needle into the exact SAME insertion point as was used on the previous donations. This prevents the wound from ever healing. /​When I would ask for specific phlebotomists so that I would not have this problem [2 superb phlebotomists at Octapharma are Angie and Genghis] — Octapharma management complained about me asking for particular phlebotomists.
Also, some of the phlebotomists here are not capable of understanding even the SIMPLEST communications in the English language.
Yet ANOTHER problem:
Octapharma gets a very great many homeless people — some of whom are unkempt and distracting.

Alright, so it’s not the Four Seasons.
I had a really negative experience trying to get information about becoming a donor before I had even gotten there! That scared me. Having gone regularly for a few months now, I know that it was just a symptom of the larger problem which is of course, like a lot of medical facilities, too many patients and not enough providers.
There’s a pretty good amt of people who work here, but the amt of people coming in at any given moment is always more.
My first visit was the longest at 2 ½ to 3 hours. My most recent visit ran a close second, but I came in like an hour before closing which just happened to be the end of the month. A very busy time for many establishments of this nature. I wasn’t too bummed though because I felt guilty for going so close to closing and they were so swamped. The employees stayed calm and no one exhibited the irritation you often see other places when they have to stay one to two hours after closing.
Alex is everyone’s favorite. He’s got so much personality and he and another coworker bring the movies. Lol. He’s kind, and engaging and to be honest it’s cool just to see him work. I don’t even have to describe him because if you go you’ll hear everybody calling his name like one million times. There are a good amount of people who work there and for the most part everyone is really nice.
There’s a few things I’m dying to change. One is they do the quick poke blood prick thing to take a sample from the tip of your finger (often seen in the rapid HIV tests) and THEN they take your blood pressure. I wonder why mine is always higher right after that? Maybe because you just stabbed me. Second is the restrooms. Yuck! One of the keys to a smooth and expedited donation is to drink tons of water. I like to drink 60 – 120 ounces before and needless to say I have to use the ladies room when I am there. There’s three bathrooms. One for women, one for men and one for both down the hall. The two I’m allowed to go into are prob my least favorite things next to the needles themselves. There’s a sign requesting you kindly let the employees know if the restrooms need service. But seeing as how they always do, I haven’t bothered. Beginning of the day is a little more orderly than the end, but not by much.
I started going here when I was out of work, but now I go for some quick «cash» (they load money on to a prepaid Visa card). It’s nice to get a little gas or food money between pay checks. I posted a not so clear picture of the various amounts you receive, which is based on weight and how often you come. It’s not a six figure salary, but it’s more than you make doing almost any other non job for money. Recycling comes to mind ($ 3 for 2 months worth of collecting!!!). I’ve caught some cool flicks, made a little cash, all while donating to something more important than myself. I’m content.

I’ve only been here a few times so far, but the staff has been really helpful & accommodating. I’m surprised to see such negative reviews of this place. Considering its a place you choose to go to donate plasma, I wouldn’t expect any type of friendly interaction… or whatever you wanna call it. I found them to all be really nice, all smiling when they see you in the hallway waiting, or wherever you may be to glance a look. I’ve even seen them make a point to hug the regulars that come in there. Like how nice is that!
They’re all very professional every time I’ve been there, & have explained things so thoroughly I wouldn’t even have known to ask such questions, let alone go into such detailed things & topics! I can totally see why they may have a biased towards certain people, considering the few times I did donate people definitely looked like the main reason they were donating was for their weekly alcohol & cig money. Nothing wrong with that, but usually those people carry a certain aura, façade about them — whatever you wanna call it.
If you make sure you hydrate yourself before hand it definitely makes a huge difference. Every time I have been there I am in disbelief over how they insert the needle into your vein, & it doesn’t hurt… like at all! Amazeballs. I’ve had my blood drawn many times, & THAT hurts more than donating.
I would definitely recommend donating here. It’s a drive from where I live, but it’s worth it considering my sister has an autoimmune disease & use to need regular plasmapheresis treatments. It’s my way of doing what I can, & giving back.

Mae and Kay! Very professional and a great addition to the staff. Thank you ladies. Your wonderful customer service is definitely appreciated.

Octapharma plasma is the worst donation center ever. Everybody are so slow. Noone care about anything. If you come for the first time — be prepaired for 4 — 5 hours of hasstle. Everybody treat you like you are a homeless or junkie.
Do not intend to ask someome any question — noone will know the answer.
I will never return to this place. Will better find another blood donation center.

They take like fifty gallons of blood i was like omg are u serieous? it takes foooorever your first time like 4 to 5 hours and i guess since i weigh so little they only gave me thirty buks for taking half my life with a huge as# thick neede. ur literally sitting in a chair for an hour thinking «wow i really hit a low point on this one» its gonna be really funny when cops turn up ten years from now rounding up all the lower classes cause they willingly gave the evidence which proves they smoked crack in 2010. its pretty crazy if your a dopepheen (most of them are no wonder they don’t drug test them they’d lose 90% their clientele) by all means go for it (i have sum issues…) but if you care anything about dignity please do yourself a favor and don’t sell it for the price of a dennys meal.