Supply chain issues create blood donation hurdles

OKLAHOMA CITY, June 14, 2022 – When leadership from Oklahoma Blood Institute made forecasts for the summer blood supply, they were concerned. Once they realized the already troubling forecast would be impacted by disruptive supply chain issues, concern became worry and sparked an urgent call for all donors to give.

Supply chain problems and failures have created new difficulties for the blood center, keeping many of the products it needs every day in short supply. One product – the plastic bags used to collect “double red cells,” a specialty blood drawing procedure that allows a single donor to maximize giving by providing two units in only one sitting – aren’t reliably available, leaving the blood supply in jeopardy.

Without these critical products, more donors must be recruited to make up the productivity losses and assure patient needs are met.

“Double red cell donations are a backbone of our collections, particularly with some of our most needed donors, like our O negatives,” said Dr. John Armitage, president and CEO of Oklahoma Blood Institute. “When we don’t have the specialty bag sets we need to collect these units, we put our stewardship efforts and emergency response capabilities at risk.”

The global supply chain issues are exacerbating an already tenuous situation, in which the blood supply remains at lower-than-needed levels. Fewer donors are giving than in the pre-pandemic world, and hospital usage of blood products remains high.

“Summer blood donation rates are always lower, but for us to now face a situation where we can have donors come to the drive and be unable to give their fullest and best gifts is both frustrating and disheartening,” Armitage said. “We’re fighting with a hand tied behind our back and our supply chain foul ups aren’t likely to get better anytime soon. Broken manufacturing and delivery pipelines are never good, but in the blood world they put lives and patient care at risk.”