The region is currently experiencing a blood emergency with dangerously low levels of O+ and O-, B- and platelets, and an overall inventory well below optimal levels.
MINNESOTA — Memorial Blood Centers today has announced a blood emergency following a summer of low donor turnout. Contributing to the shortage are the recent Labor Day holiday, back-to-school activities, and a prolonged 50% decrease in youth and first-time donors.
The region’s blood supply is well below the optimal 5-7 days and while all blood types are needed, types O+, O-, B-, and platelets are critically low. And Minnesota is not alone, blood shortages are happening across the country, with multiple centers urgently calling for blood donations.
The sustained loss of youth and first-time donors, fewer organizations hosting blood drives, and remote and blended work schedules are all combined to have a devastating impact on our local and the nation’s blood supply. There is no surplus in the U.S. to help out centers that experience seasonal shortages. With fewer high schools and colleges hosting blood drives over the past three years, youth and first-time donors missed the opportunity to donate among friends and peers and to potentially develop a lifetime of giving.
“The days of having a blood drive at your place of work, your place of worship, every school and college have drastically changed due to the pandemic, and we need community members to find a donor center or a community blood drive to make a donation,” said Kathy Geist, VP of Memorial Blood Centers. “It’s critical that our community come out in response to our blood emergency to help us rebuild our inventory and ensure that we have life-saving blood for patients in our hospitals. You never know when you might need blood, so pay it forward by making a donation today.”
About Memorial Blood Centers: Memorial Blood Centers (MBC) has been saving lives since 1948 as an independent nonprofit. MBC relies on the local community to donate blood to help ensure a safe and stable blood supply is available to area hospitals and other partners. With operations in Minnesota and Wisconsin, MBC is a Division of New York Blood Center, Inc. (a family of operating Divisions known as New York Blood Center Enterprises), serving communities across the country. For more information, visit mbc.org. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
