Doctor who invented plasma

The plasma was then pooled from a collection of eight bottles using an anti-contamination technique under strict air and ultraviolet lighting conditions, and samples were cultured for bacteria. An anti-bacterial called Merthiolate was added to the blood product and batches were tested weekly. Finally, each batch was transferred to a shipping container and diluted with sterile saline solution.

A final sample for bacteria-testing was taken before the containers were sealed and packed. By early August, a trial shipment of plasma was sent to England and confirmed "entirely satisfactory. Drew later returned to Howard briefly but was called back to continue supervising the BFB program. When the program ended in January , Blood for Britain collected 14, blood donations, and shipped via the Red Cross over 5, liters of plasma saline solution to England. The program became a model for the Red Cross pilot program to mass-produce dried plasma in New York in February , with Drew as assistant director, and later for the National Blood Donor Service.

Ironically, the Red Cross excluded African Americans from donating blood, making Drew himself ineligible to participate in the very program he established. Charles Drew died tragically in North Carolina on April 1, , after falling asleep while driving to a conference. He was given a blood transfusion at an all-white hospital but succumbed to the injuries.

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Funding Funding to support the advancement of the chemical sciences through research projects. Charles Richard Drew. June 3, — April 1, Renowned surgeon and pioneer in the preservation of life-saving blood plasma. Major scientific achievements:. Discovered method for long-term storage of blood plasma Organized America's first large-scale blood bank. Skip to main content. Donate Now. Charles Drew. The Death of Dr. To understand the legend, you have to know something about the man. Drew arrived at the hospital in an ambulance.

Alamance County General Hospital doctors administered plasma to Drew in addition to giving other emergency treatment. Drew did not die from loss of blood alone. Subscribe to our e-newsletter. Drew took a moral stand when the Red Cross announced it would segregate the blood of white and black donors.

He denounced the decision on both moral and scientific grounds and resigned in protest. Drew returned to Howard University as chair of surgery with a mission to train the next generation of African-American medical students. But his achievements did not stop there. In , he became the first black surgeon to be named an examiner on the American Board of Surgery, and two years later he received the Spingarn Medal from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, honoring his contributions to human welfare.

Drew was elected to the International College of Surgeons, and a year later launched a movement to persuade the American Medical Association to admit black members. Drew had completed his overnight rounds and then presumably fell asleep in the early morning while behind the wheel.

The three students traveling with him survived. Though his life was cut short, his impact on medicine continues to be felt. Drew was outraged by this racist policy, and resigned his post after only a few months. After creating two of the first blood banks, Drew returned to Howard University in He served as a professor there, heading up the university's department of surgery.

He also became the chief surgeon at Freedmen's Hospital. In , the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People honored Drew with its Spingarn Medal for "the highest and noblest achievement" by an African-American "during the preceding year or years.

For the final years of his life, Drew remained an active and highly regarded medical professional. He continued to serve as the chief surgeon at Freedmen's Hospital and a professor at Howard University. On April 1, , Drew and three other physicians attended a medical conference at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.

Drew was behind the wheel when his vehicle crashed near Burlington, North Carolina. His passengers survived, but Drew succumbed to his injuries. He left behind his wife, Minnie, and their four children.

Drew was only 45 years old at the time of his death, and it is remarkable how much he was able to accomplish in such a limited amount of time. As the Reverend Jerry Moore said at Drew's funeral, Drew had "a life which crowds into a handful of years' significance, so great, men will never be able to forget it.

Since his passing, Drew has received countless posthumous honors. He was featured in the United States Postal Service's Great Americans stamp series in , and his name appears on educational institutions across the country.