4/28/2024 0 Comments Fitness connection hours raleigh![]() Who most needs blood donations?īlood is most often needed for cancer patients and in emergencies. “We’ve found that while some are motivated by the rewards, others are donating for the fact that they can help save a life, so it's really a mix of the two,” Kirtner said. ![]() A donor can also choose to donate their points back to a charitable organization. In 2021, during the shortage, the American Red Cross entered donors in a contest to win a trip to Hawaii.ĭonors who donate blood through The Blood Connection receive “points” they can redeem for electronic gift cards and other gifts. If a person donates blood six times a year, they could make $300, essentially getting paid while saving lives. Organizers of blood drives have started handing out $25 or $50 gift cards, some even as high as $70, to donors. The good news is blood donor numbers are increasing again, she said. Why is a US blood shortage being reported?Īccording to Kirtner, blood donor turnout began dropping in 2022, when the COVID-19 pandemic was still in full swing. Do NC hospitals have enough blood?Ī spokesperson for UNC Health said, thanks to regularly-scheduled blood suppliers, blood inventory at UNC hospitals has been at or close to maximum inventory goals, and all patients have been able to get the blood they needed. UNC Health Rex in Raleigh and UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill perform the most blood transfusions. “The blood supply is reliant on the community … because it can't be replicated or created in a lab - it has to come from a volunteer donor.”Ī spokesperson said UNC Health’s hospitals across the Triangle (Raleigh, Holly Springs, Smithfield, Clayton, Chapel Hill and Hillsborough) use about 170 units per day (including red blood cells, plasma products and/or platelets). “We continue to encourage donors to come out and donate in case something arises,” Kirtner said. Donated blood doesn't last forever - it must be transfused within 42 days of collection, according to The Blood Connection. Kitner said The Blood Connection is not currently facing a blood shortage or crisis, but blood is a resource that is needed consistently. "Blood products cannot be manufactured in the lab, so we depend on blood donors for all transfusion needs." Blake Hutchinson, a pathologist who oversees the blood bank at UNC Health Rex in Raleigh. "A car accident or another type of emergency can deplete our blood inventory pretty quickly and we depend on donors to help replenish that supply," said Dr. “If a trauma or a car accident we want to make sure that we've got that blood for the hospitals.” "That is to provide what they need, but that doesn't account for the emergency situations that might arise,” said Ellen Kirtner, a spokesperson for The Blood Connection. The Blood Connection aims to collect around 300 units of blood daily in the Raleigh area through the main blood donation center and mobile units deployed across the state. The Blood Connection, is a Raleigh-based organization that collects donor blood and distributes it to hospitals in four states, including over 30 hospitals across eastern North Carolina. According to the American Red Cross, each blood donation can save up to three lives. ![]() Why do Triangle hospitals need blood?Ī variety of patients need blood every day, including trauma patients, cancer patients, premature infants and surgical patients. That means an eligible individual can donate up to six times each year. Whole blood donors must wait 56 days (eight weeks) before they can donate blood again. The American Red Cross outlines the entire process online.ĭonors should be ready to provide identification and answer questions in a private interview about their health history, medications, places traveled and how they are feeling. Wondering what it's like to give blood? The entire process usually takes between 45 minutes to 1 hour of a donor's time, although the blood donation itself lasts less than 10 minutes. "If we both have a day off, we check to see if enough time has passed so we can donate again," O'Donnell said. ![]() Since The Blood Connection offers electronic gift cards for free movie tickets, after giving blood, the couple goes to the movie theater. They both signed up for texts from The Blood Connection to get notified when there is a demand. Mackenzie O'Donnell, 21, also gives blood several times each year, saying she and her partner treat giving blood a date - after they donate, they go to the movies. "I thought to myself, I should get back to doing that again.
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