With the Metroplex area blood supply at a lower than ideal level, JPS donors were able to roll up their sleeves and do their share Tuesday to replenish the vital resource.
“Overall, our turnout was great,” said JPS Transfusion Safety Program Coordinator Laci Dreyer. “We have strong support from our donors and we’re thankful for it.”
Organizers targeted 30 units of blood as their goal for the drive. The total for the event surpassed that mark with 34 donations collected including 28 units of whole blood, two double red donations, two platelet donations, one donation of red blood cells and plasma and one donation of platelets and plasma.
Carter BloodCare had extra staff working the drive to handle the larger than usual turnout. One Carter employee, Eboni Hanewald, said she wished that she was able to volunteer to give blood instead of only being eligible to help others to donate. Because she recently donated blood, she was not able to contribute this time. You must wait 56 days between donations of whole blood to allow your body to rebound from the loss.
“I love to donate because it makes me feel like I am making a difference,” Hanewald said. “A lot of people don’t do it for one reason or another. But it makes me feel good to know that I might be helping to save someone’s life.”
While 34 units of blood products collected in one day is impressive, the need to replenish the supply is never ending. At JPS alone, about 1,000 units of blood are used in an average month, Dreyer said. As a Level I Trauma Center, JPS frequently handles critically injured patients likely in need of blood transfusions. Donated blood is processed into its components, red blood cells, plasma and platelets. All three are used in resuscitation of trauma patients with significant blood loss. Across the country, 4.5 million patients need blood transfusions each year. About one in seven people admitted to a hospital need blood during their stay.
The next JPS blood drive will be July 27 in the OPC auditorium on the third floor of the main hospital building.