![]() ![]() It’s not about finding time to donate, it’s about making time to donate. When you add it up, there is no comparison. “I’m a busy guy, but I make time because it’s about the person I’m helping. But no matter what I do individually, it’s not nearly as powerful as what we could do collectively,” said Brennan. “I’m just one person and have been able to contribute what I have. He has continued to donate regularly throughout the pandemic to ensure patients receive the treatments they need and invites others to join him. Brennan recently gave his 500th donation of blood or platelets, a milestone that less than one percent of all donors in the Red Cross national system achieve. ONE DONOR CAN MAKE A BIG IMPACT Shaun Brennan of Tennessee has proven that one donor can make a significant impact on hospital patient care. While it is clear that the pandemic continues to weigh heavily on people’s lives, the Red Cross asks the public to remember that donating blood is essential to help save the lives of patients who depend on the availability of blood. There is also an emergency need for platelets, which is the clotting portion of blood and must be transfused within five days of donation.įall is typically a time when the blood supply rebounds from summer blood shortages when blood donations increase as blood drives return to school campuses after summer break and donors are more available than during the busy summer months. The supply of types O positive and O negative blood, the most needed blood types by hospitals, dropped to less than a half-day supply at times over the last month − well below the ideal five-day supply. The Red Cross has had less than a day’s supply of certain blood types in recent weeks. ![]() Those who are eligible are urged to share their good health – please schedule an appointment to give blood or platelets as soon as possible by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-80). The Red Cross needs to collect 10,000 additional blood products each week over the next month to overcome the current shortage and meet the needs of patients in hospitals across the country. The Red Cross is working around the clock to meet the blood needs of hospitals and patients – but we can’t do it alone.”īlood product distributions to hospitals have remained strong, significantly outpacing blood donations in recent weeks. “We recognize that this is a trying time for our country as we balance the new demands of returning to former routines with the ongoing pandemic, but lifesaving blood donations remains essential for hospitals patients in need of emergency and medical care that can’t wait. Now with decreased blood donor turnout, our Red Cross blood supply has dropped to the lowest it has been at this time of year since 2015,” said Chris Hrouda, president of Red Cross Biomedical Services. ![]() “Throughout the pandemic, we have experienced challenges collecting blood for patients from blood drive cancellations to surging hospital demand. Those who are eligible to donate are urged to do so now to help overcome this current shortage. Donor turnout has reached the lowest levels of the year, decreasing by about 10% since August. As the nation returns to in-person workplaces and schools amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, the American Red Cross faces an emergency blood and platelet shortage.
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