WASHINGTON — As Virginians get swamped with holiday preparations and travel, some may find it difficult to find the time to donate blood but the need for blood donors, especially in the winter months, remains high.
Blood cannot be artificially manufactured, so people need to donate blood at their local blood bank to keep up the supply. Each day, the Red Cross alone must receive nearly 400 donations in the Washington, D.C., metro area just to keep up with the demand from hospitals.
Scott Marder, regional communications manager for the American Red Cross, said it is important to find time to donate blood during the holidays.
“Oftentimes, people travel, and they focus on the holidays, events and gifts, and they don’t come out to donate,” Marder observed. “They don’t go to the blood drive and yet the need for blood is constant. So we are urging people to come out to donate.”
Despite the need for blood, few donate. Even though more than 60% of Virginians are eligible to donate blood, only 3% do. According to America’s Blood Centers, just a 1% increase in donors would alleviate blood shortages.
Marder added a person needs a blood transfusion in the U.S. every two seconds. He emphasized blood donation is completely safe and the process is easy. After going through health history and testing your blood, clinics move forward with the donation process.
“It really only takes about eight to 10 minutes in the donation bed,” Marder explained. “You may feel a little bit of a pin prick for a second as they put the needle in, but that’s it. I see people read books, or I saw someone doing work on his laptop while he was donating. And then when you’re done, you can go over and you get juice and cookies.”
To find a local blood drive, you can go to RedCrossBlood.org and enter your ZIP code for a list of blood drives near you.
