Blood shortage still vexes health care providers
Despite improvements earlier in the year, blood services providers and health care facilities are again facing a shortage of blood donations, more than two years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This summer saw a dip in blood supplies that has raised concerns for medical professionals.
Kristen Lane, communications manager at the blood services provider Vitalant, said the provider's blood supply overall has shrunk to 200 donors per day, a far cry from the 600 daily donors needed to fully stock area hospitals.
“What we’re suspecting is that since this is really the first summer that people are out and about, everybody is just giddy about going somewhere and traveling,” Lane said. “With so many people traveling and going on vacation and going out, they’re literally not here to donate blood.”
While Vitalant and hospitals can bring in blood from other locations, supply is limited nationally, she said.
“Since the whole country is experiencing a blood shortage, we’re having a really hard time finding blood that we can bring in to southwestern Pennsylvania for the hospitals we serve, including Butler Health System,” she said. “It’s not just Vitalant in Pittsburgh — this is really nationwide.”
At Butler Health System, Dr. Robert Patterson, who is chairman of the pathology department and medical director of laboratory and laboratory outreach, says the hospitals have still been able to provide necessary services, but concerns about blood shortages are on the horizon.
“So far we haven’t had to limit services, but we get emails from Vitalant every week about the situation,” he said. “Currently, the biggest concern is O-negative, because that is the universal donor, and you can use that for emergency situations.
“It’s an endless thing, so we are always trying to encourage blood drives, and that sort of thing.
“We’re all thinking, a lot of it has to do with still the after-effects of COVID, and people not getting out and donating as much,” he said. “The shortage, for whatever reason, is continuing, but we are operating fine. I don’t want anybody to be worried that we can’t take care of them, but we keep an eye on it every week. If people would be generous with their time and their donations, that would be a good thing.”
Health care leaders are concerned that future exacerbation or a continuation of the shortage may require hospitals to limit some surgeries, Lane said.
“I have been speaking with medical directors at UPMC and AHN, and their concern is if we do not get the blood back into hospitals, they are really concerned that they might have to postpone elective surgeries or even cancel elective surgeries,” she said. “They haven't had to do that yet, but it is a concern.”
Elective surgeries were limited in some capacity during the first year of the pandemic, but more are taking place now, making it difficult to compare shortage numbers from the early parts of the pandemic to today, she added.
“While we have not yet had to ration our blood supply or delay or cancel any patient procedures at AHN, the persistent blood shortage seen since the beginning of the pandemic requires us to be cautious in our use of blood products,” Dr. Allan Philp, chief medical officer at AHN Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, said in a statement. “To ensure appropriate supply levels at hospitals across our region, we urge current blood donors to donate whenever possible and for those who are not yet registered to become a donor today.”
Some limitations on blood donation have been lifted in response to the shortage. The Food and Drug Administration lifted restrictions on those who had recently traveled to France, Ireland or the United Kingdom, who were previously unable to donate blood due to the risk of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD), also known as mad cow disease. Now, these individuals are eligible to give blood as long as they meet all other eligibility criteria.
Upcoming blood drives in Butler County
The Movies at Cranberry (Hickory Farms Holiday Market)
Cranberry Mall, Cranberry Township
Aug. 29 from 1 to 6 p.m.
Butler Memorial Hospital
Sept. 8 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
