TOLEDO, Ohio — Over the last 20 years, the blood supply nationwide has continually declined, and the American Red Cross reported their supply is critically low.
Rachel Hepner Zawodny, the executive director of the Red Cross of northwest Ohio, said a shortage anywhere is a devastation to the entire nation.
"We typically see a little bit of a decline around the holidays, but with weather-related delays, we just saw a major dip and we need to get back on track again," Zawodny said. "We need to collect roughly about eight thousand units a day to catch up."
More recently, winter storms across the county have forced 534 blood donation drives to cancel, including 15 blood drives in northern Ohio.
Zawodny said when winter storms impact the roads and cancel drives, blood can't be collected. According to her, 15,000 blood and platelet donations have gone uncollected this month.
The shortages pose a significant threat to hospitals, where patients are in need of urgent care.
"The hospitals are impacted," she said. "You figure people are coming in, trauma patients. If there's not blood on the shelves for the doctors to grab in this situation, then what happens to that patient?"
A lack of blood donations can also impact patients needing long-term treatment and care, Zawodny explained.
"Our cancer patients that need platelets. What happens to those patients? So, it's the trickledown effect," she said. "We don't want to get into a situation where we don't have the supply that we need, and those patients aren't cared for," she said, and indicated a donation - lasting only 45 minutes - really can give the gift of life.
The number of donors has declined 40%, marking this the nation's worst blood shortage in two decades. To mitigate the shortage, the American Red Cross is urging the public to consider donating, and those who do won't leave empty handed. As an incentive, the Red Cross will give a $20 Amazon gift card when you donate blood throughout the month of February.
William Billings is donating this month. He said it's a cause he's been committed to for more than 50 years.
"There are people who need whole blood. My first wife and I were hit by a car back in 1971, and if they hadn't have had blood to give us, then wouldn't have made it," Billings said.
Since then, Billings said he gives as frequent as possible, especially after he learned his blood type is in high demand and goes farther than most.
"O-negative is the universal type you can give to anyone," he said. "Then there's a factor if you have in your blood, you can't give to newborns. But I don't have that factor, so they call us heroes for babies. They're always excited when we're able to give."
Billings was referring to Cytomegalovirus (CMV) a flu-like virus that most adults have been exposed to in their lives, according to the American Red Cross' website. While it is generally harmless to adults, babies can only safely receive blood that has not been exposed to CMV. The American Red Cross encourages those who are eligible CMV-negative donors to give blood on a consistent basis.
You can learn more about the incentives and find a location near you at the American Red Cross website.
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