Lull in blood donations causes emergency shortage in supply
During the week of July 4, Vitalant’s national blood supply hit an 18-month low, causing an emergency shortage of donated blood across the nation, but also in Western Pennsylvania. The agency is offering incentives throughout August to people who donate blood to help restock its blood supply.
Maya Santana, communications manager for Vitalant’s northeastern division, said the agency typically sees a drop in donations in the summer, because 10% of its supply comes from college and high school blood drives. However, donations in general have fallen since 2020, when many workplaces introduced work-from-home policies which decreased the number of donations from workplace drives.
Santana said while Vitalant encourages people to donate by emphasizing that each donation can help three patients, it also partners with organizations like the Pittsburgh Pirates to offer rewards to donors. Everyone who donates blood with Vitalant from now until Aug. 29 will receive a $10 gift card through Donor Rewards, and will be entered into a $10,000 giveaway of a prepaid gift card of the winner’s choice, according to a news release from Vitalant.
“Especially post-pandemic we have had a tough time retaining donors; we’re always trying to think of new ways to recruit,” Santana said. “We are going to need this blood to treat people in UPMC and Allegheny General Hospital.”
The American Red Cross also is offering Amazon gift cards to people who donate blood in August, to meet the need for blood throughout the nation.
Vitalant announced an emergency shortage of type O blood — the most-transfused blood type — early in July. Type O-negative can be used to help any patient and O-positive can help any patient with A-positive, B-positive, AB-positive or O-positive blood, according to a news release from Vitalant.
According to Santana, Vitalant had an average goal of collecting 1,118 blood donations in July in Pittsburgh, but the actual collection was 40% lower than the goal.
Santana said Vitalant typically hosts up to 200 blood drives a month throughout Western Pennsylvania, but that number is lower in the summer. She added that someone needs a blood transfusion every two seconds, and Vitalant needs to collect 600 blood donations a day to meet the need.
Blood donated in Western Pennsylvania, Santana said, typically stays in the area, so when people donate blood in Butler County, their donation may go to a neighbor or friend.
“The shear number of people who need these transfusions when they walk into a hospital is astounding,” Santana said. “We always say that the best reward is knowing that you saved three lives.”
To find a list of upcoming blood drives, visit vitalant.org.
