The nation’s blood supply is at a critically low level, so the American Red Cross is looking for donors, including those who have had COVID.
To help, Crosspoint Christian Church will host a blood drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on March 25.
Denise Smith, senior account manager for Red Cross Biomedical Services, said there is a need for all blood types. She also stressed there is a need for blood for sickle cell patients and for blood from people who have had COVID-19.
“The University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Miss., alone needs 500 units for their sickle cell patients,” Smith said. “Other hospitals have a similar need and also do not have enough blood for their sickle cell patents, so there is a great need for this blood that can only come from diverse donors.”
If you have had COVID-19, your blood could save the life of someone currently suffering with the virus, according to Smith. “The Red Cross is running a COVID-19 antibodies test on every donation,” Smith said. “If the blood does test positive for the COVID-19 antibodies, we will run a secondary test that will let us know if that donor’s plasma can be pulled and used as convalescent plasma for current critical patients.”
Smith said donors who have had COVID need to be symptom free for 14 days.
Smith said she is frequently asked if blood donations stay in the community where the donations occurred. “When you give blood, your blood goes where it is specifically needed,” she said. “You may match someone in Louisiana; you may match someone in Florida. It may be that someone in those areas matches someone in Selma, so we are able to pull that blood and get it to someone who may need it in Selma.”
Smith also explained that the Red Cross has a national database that accounts for each unit of blood. This ensures that no matter where in the country a patient has a need, and no matter where the blood was collected, the proper match can be quickly made, and the blood can get to the patients in a timely fashion. Blood has a shelf life, and if it is not used within that time frame, it will go to waste, Smith said.
If you want to give blood, call Kathy Smith at 334-328-9250 or go to www.redcross.org and sign up.
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