Menu
Red Cross in critical need of blood donations
SIKESTON — With summer in full swing, the American Red Cross is continuing to spread the word that blood and platelet donors are in high demand right now to support lifesaving transfusions.
On Monday, July 8, the Red Cross hosted a blood drive at the Missouri Department of Transportation in Sikeston.
Amanda Joyce, American Red Cross’ account manager for bio-medical services, said every day in the United States patients in hospitals require approximately 44,000 units of blood.
“That’s basically 17 million donations or nearly that many transfused to 5 million patients a year,” Joyce said. “The medical need is for transplant procedures like liver transplants, heart transplants and open-heart surgery, bone marrow transplants, severe burns, accident trauma victims, the list goes on. And all of these procedures require at a minimum of at least two units of blood which is two donations.”
According to Joyce, the blood type O-negative is the most popular universal blood type, accounting for only 7% of the population.
“If you have O-negative blood, your blood can be used by everybody,” Joyce said. “And that’s really important because there is only so much of us.”
According to Joyce, the most common blood types are O-negative, O-positive and A-negative, but all blood types are required.
Joyce emphasized the importance of donating, particularly during this time of year.
“Blood doesn’t last forever and the shelf life if blood is 42 days so once that is up, it has to be tossed and replenished, and your platelets only last for seven days,” Joyce said. “It’s needed more now than ever especially in the summer months because it’s such a critical time frame where people are going on vacations, and our regular donor base is not around this time of year.”
Joyce also talked about donating platelets and why they are important to donate.
“Platelets are the particles in your blood that aid clotting, so platelets are important because they can control bleeding in patients with leukemia or who are undergoing chemotherapy,” Joyce said.
Joyce said people can’t donate platelets at a blood drive, but if they wish to donate platelets they can call the American Red Cross blood center in Cape Girardeau and make an appointment.
Joyce said with people being busy during the summer months, the demand for blood increases significantly.
“There are more people in accidents and more people on the road so the demand increases,” Joyce said. “So, the demand goes up, but the supply goes down, and so it’s pretty serious.”
Caitlin Neal, a phlebotomist with the American Red Cross, decided to donate blood on Monday and explained why she believes it is important.
“I’ve been donating since I was in high school,” Neal said. “I like to donate because it is probably the easiest thing I can do to help my fellow man. I will make more blood, and it doesn’t hurt anything for me to donate.”
Neal encouraged people who were able to donate to do it.
“It doesn’t hurt much at all, and you can help save up to three lives just by donating,” Neal said.
Upcoming blood drives in Sikeston are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 12 at Montgomery Bank, 1 Montgomery Bank Drive; noon to 4 p.m. July 16 at the Clinton Building Community Center, 501 Campanella Drive; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 19 at the Sikeston American Legion Hall, 333 S. Kingshighway; and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. July 22 at the VFW Hall, 709 Smith Ave.