Last Wednesday’s whiteout had more serious effects than keeping a few professors from getting to work. The D.C.-Baltimore area may be wet with winter weather but its blood supply is significantly dried out. The snow and ice forced many donor centers to shut down—those that stayed open got a much lower turnout than usual. The blood supply is so low that the Greater Chesapeake and Potomac Blood Region of the American Red Cross has issued an “urgent plea” for donors.
The regional chapter of the Red Cross operates donor centers in D.C., Northern Virginia and Baltimore. It also collects blood from, and supplies blood to, most area hospitals.
Blood shortages often occur during the winter, when inclement weather keeps people inside. An estimated 1000 potential donations were lost due to last week’s wallop, which accounts for an entire day’s supply of blood for the Greater Chesapeake and Potomac Region. Normally, when one region suffers from a blood dearth, other regions lend their vital fluid. But this winter, messy weather has hit elsewhere as well.
During shortages, people who have scheduled elective surgeries are often forced to reschedule. Those waiting for liver and other organ transplants and other solid organs often have to wait and may even be turned away. Though no transplant patients have been turned away from area hospitals during the current pinch, why wait for the situation to worsen?
The Voice frequently writes about national or international issues we often have little control over. Yet, giving blood—especially during a shortfall—goes directly to saving lives. It makes no difference whether you donate at a donor center or a hospital because they share blood. Places to donate can be found at www.my-redcross.org and 1-800-GIVELIFE.
Dr. Gerald Sandler, the Chief Medical Officer of the Red Cross, has said that the current shortage is one of the most severe that he has ever seen in his nearly forty years working for blood institutions. It is the obligation of every able member of our community to do their part—if the area’s supply falls further, those in need of life-saving blood transfusion may suffer.
