Grace Free Lutheran Church teams up with Vitalant for Blood Drive, February 14
Vitalant is one of the nation’s oldest and largest nonprofit community blood service providers, supplying transfusion medicine services to almost 1,000 hospitals and health care partners in 40 states. The organization hosts many blood drives in our area throughout the year, and the next one in Valley City will be hosted by Grace Free Lutheran Church on Tuesday, February 14 from 12:30-6 p.m.
To schedule an appointment call Elaine Miedema at 701-8459972 or visit https://donors.vitalant.org/dwp/ portal/dwa
Those eligible to donate blood can save up to three lives with each donation they make. Donating blood and convalescent plasma is more a need than ever before.
Why Donate?
“Blood is the most precious gift that anyone can give to another person — the gift of life,” the World Health Organization says. “A decision to donate your blood can save a life, or even several…”
Blood is routinely used in performing surgeries and other procedures across the country. It’s tough to grasp just how much blood is needed for patients—it’s huge. Here’s an example: an adult can donate one unit (350-450 ml) of blood once every three months. One liver transplant can use 120 units of blood.
“In total,” Medical Arts Laboratory writes, “the Red Cross and America’s Blood Centers (ABC) need 80,000 units on hand daily to meet the needs of virtually all U.S. blood blanks.”
Of the 38% of eligible donors in the US, only around 10% donate blood. If those who regularly donate can inspire someone else to begin doing the same, the effect can spread far and wide, increasing blood donations and saving millions of lives (yes, millions—more than 4.5 million people in the US would die each year without blood transfusions).
When you donate, your blood can be used to treat medical conditions like anaemia and cancer, be used in surgery—both routine and emergency—and be used to compensate for blood loss after childbirth.
A lesser known use of donated blood is transfusions for those with incurable illnesses, in people facing both longterm and short-term terminal conditions. These transfusions improve these indviduals’ quality of life so that they can most comfortably enjoy the time they have with families and friends.
Be a Blood Hero
It’s easy to find out if you can donate: just check out the Red Cross website’s Eligibility Requirements and/or contact them directly.
As our region sees blood supplies growing slimmer, it’s more important than ever to consider giving blood.
Rest assured that Vitalant is implementing every measure to keep donors and staff safe Donors also have their blood checked for COVID-19 antibodies with every donation.