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HACKENSACK UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER URGES THOSE WHO CAN TO GIVE BLOOD DURING SUMMER MONTHS
Hackensack University Medical Center is seeking blood donors to ease the blood shortage typically encountered during the summer months. The need for blood continues to grow; yet blood shortages persist. The summer is an especially difficult time to obtain donations due to the hot weather and people taking vacations. The truth is that there is no vacation from the need for blood. Trauma victims, cancer patients, and children with chronic illnesses, such as sickle cell disease, need blood 365 days a year. Volunteer donors are the sole providers of blood for transfusion.
“We all expect blood to be there for us, but only five percent of people who are able to donate blood actually do. In the tri-state area, the percentage of donors is even lower,” says Kathleen Reilly, administrative director of Pathology at Hackensack University Medical Center.
There is no risk of contracting a disease through donating blood. Each donation is taken using a sterile bag and sterile needle, which is used once and disposed of safely. The nation’s blood supply is safer than ever, due to strict donor screening and extensive testing of the blood itself. The risk of contracting a blood-borne disease through transfusion is, in fact, far less than the risk of not receiving the transfusion at all. Today, the nation’s blood supply is safer than ever.
Although particularly low on type O-negative and type O-positive, all blood types are now appreciated. To become a blood donor, contact the Hackensack University Medical Center blood donor service at ( 201) 996-4818 or 4819. The entire process takes about an hour. You will be asked a series of pre-screening questions to determine your eligibility as a donor. Many people, who think that they may not qualify to donate, actually are able to donate. If you are in general good health, weigh at least 110 pounds and are 17 years of age or older, call to give “the gift of life.”
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