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New York Blood Center

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Bad weather, cold and flu season and more are causing a drop in blood donations.

CLICK HERE TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT

New York Blood Center (NYBC) declared the first blood emergency of 2023 on March 6. The blood emergency is due to several evolving factors, including recent poor weather, school breaks and cold and flu season. Last month, NYBC and its divisions across the nation received 6,000 fewer blood donations than the year prior and blood donations are 12% below hospital and patient needs.

The number of blood donations still are not back to pre-pandemic levels. Compounding the problem is a continued lag in first-time and youth donors, which remain about half of pre-pandemic levels.  And while New Yorkers are returning to in-person work, office and community blood drives and visits to NYBC Donor Centers are significantly down.  People working from home had an easier time donating in our donor centers, but we’re seeing a dramatic decrease at our centers.

“Each winter, we struggle to get folks to donate blood and this year is no exception. We need more New Yorkers to make blood donations, host blood drives and spread the word about the need for donations,” said Andrea Cefarelli, Senior Vice President at New York Blood Center.“Last year, we expanded our reach with a new donor center, and we recently announced new donor guidelines from the FDA; we are expanding in every way we can in order to reach new donors. This March, make a blood donation and tell a friend!”

In addition to whole blood donors, platelet donors are urgently needed. With a shelf life of just 7 days, NYBC relies on dedicated platelet donors to help patients undergoing chemotherapy, those with bleeding disorders, new mothers, and more.

CLICK HERE TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT

 

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BLOOD AND PLATELET DONORS URGENTLY NEEDED

New York Blood Center (NYBC) announced a blood emergency on Aug. 3, as the region’s ongoing heatwave, summer travel, and a recent spike in COVID-19 cases have caused a significant decrease in donations over the past several weeks. Hospitals and patients rely upon a steady flow of donors to receive life-saving blood donations, but these factors have caused the blood supply to become unstable. The blood supply currently stands at a 1-2-day level, which is well below the ideal level of 5-7-days.

NYBC is partnering with local breweries for their “Pint for a Pint” campaign, which runs from August 1st – September 10th at all donor centers and community blood drives. As a part of this campaign, all presenting blood donors will receive a voucher to redeem a free pint of beer, cider, wine, or soft drink at their local participating brewery or restaurant. Since March 2020, the number of first-time donors has dropped dramatically and creative campaigns like “Pint for Pint” aim to raise awareness as well as amplify the need for new blood donors.

Twenty-five establishments are participating in this campaign across the region. A full list of participating breweries and restaurants can be found here. Blood donors cannot redeem their voucher for alcohol on the day of their blood donation.

“Summer has always been a challenging time for the blood supply, and we are grateful to all of our partner breweries and restaurants for stepping up to help us during this critical time,” said Andrea Cefarelli, Senior Vice President at New York Blood Center. “All of our donor centers and blood drives are air-conditioned and donating blood could serve as a great break from record-breaking heat. Even better, we’ve partnered with breweries and restaurants all over the region for free beverages as a thank you for donating.”

“The brewing community is always willing to step up to help a great cause, and we can think of nothing more important than helping out our local blood centers, particularly during this time of extreme need,” said Paul Halayko President and Co-Owner of Newburgh Brewing Company. “We are more than happy to offer a free pint of beer to someone who selflessly gives blood to help save others, a small token of our appreciation to all the amazing donors.”

NYBC hosts blood drives every day in addition to their 19 area donor centers in order to reach donors and meet local hospital needs.

They are taking extra precautions to help prevent the person-to-person spread of COVID-19. As always, people are not eligible to donate if they’re experiencing a cold, sore throat, respiratory infection or flu-like symptoms. Additional information on donor eligibility and COVID-19 precautions is available here.

To make an appointment at a blood drive near you, donors can call 1-800-933-2566 or visit nybc.org/pint. Can’t donate blood? You can still support NYBC’s mission by texting ‘NYBC’ to ‘20222’ to give $25.

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File photo by Julianne Mosher

Among the shortages New Yorkers are facing is blood donations.

According to the New York Blood Center in a press release, two months ago, donations began to decline. The center has seen 6,000 fewer donations than earlier in the year.

“This is a disturbing trend after the chronic blood crisis during the pandemic and ran counter to our hope that our communities were returning to normal,” the press release read. “We had seen some promising signs with school blood drives returning and many organizations scheduling blood drives for the first time in two years, yet, our donor centers and community blood drives have seen a decrease of 30%. While there are more convenient blood drives happening, blood donors are just not turning out.”

The New York Blood Center is currently experiencing an inventory of less than
two to three days. Types 0+ and 0- are critically low.

Dr. Linda Mamone, director of Transfusion Services/Blood Bank at Stony Brook Medicine, answered a few questions for TBR News Media about the hospital’s experience.

Stony Brook University Hospital Blood Bank is a collection facility that serves the patients at the hospital with blood and blood products.

Has the Stony Brook University Hospital Blood Bank been experiencing a blood shortage?

We have been closely monitoring our blood inventory throughout the pandemic — and earlier, of course — but we have been fortunate enough to have had a sufficient blood supply for our patients. 

Is there a particular type of blood that there is less of? 

In terms of the four main — ABO — blood groups, O is the most common, followed by A, then B and then AB. Also, many more people are Rh positive than Rh negative. All blood types are critical for donation though.

Why do you think there is a shortage? Is there any way to solve the problem?  

Certain blood products — such as platelets — have a relatively short shelf life, which can lead to significant fluctuations. Historically the summer months and COVID-19 surges have been difficult overall.

It is important to have a diverse group of blood donors, with repeat donors being vital. Another important way to improve the blood supply is to increase awareness about blood donation. This is one option for people who may not be able to directly donate but still want to help.

Do you think people are hesitant to donate blood in a health care facility setting? If so, what is your advice to them?

Some people may be reluctant to donate in a health care facility. However, our donor center has ample space for social distancing and all prospective donors are health screened at the hospital entrance. Our staff maintains adherence to policies instituted to prevent the spread of infectious agents.

The Stony Brook University Hospital Blood Bank is located in the main lobby area of the hospital’s 5th floor in Suite 5000. To schedule an appointment to donate blood or platelets, call 631-444-3662.

New York Blood Center has donor centers at 1010 Route 112, Port Jefferson Station and 905 Walt Whitman Road in Melville. Call 1-800-933-2566 to make an appointment.

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School breaks and increased travel have caused a dramatic decrease in blood donations; types O and B have dropped to 1-to-2-day level

New York Blood Center (NYBC) announced a blood emergency today, as school spring breaks and holiday travel have caused an alarming drop in donations over the past six weeks. All blood types are low and type O is at just a 1-to-2-day level.

This shortage occurs amid increasing COVID rates, which can be attributed to the highly contagious Omicron subvariant BA.2.12.1 that has been spreading rapidly throughout New York and surrounding areas. For example, New York City’s COVID transmission rate has increased 32% in the last 10 days. Last Monday, the city raised its COVID alert level to medium as cases surpassed a rate of 200 per 100,000 people in the five boroughs.

Hospitals and patients rely upon a steady flow of volunteer donors to receive life-saving blood donations, but the recent spike in cases and spring break travel have caused uncertainty. Donor participation has reached record lows at blood drives and donor centers.  In the last 6 weeks, NYBC has seen approximately 6000 fewer blood donors versus earlier this year.

“This time of the year always tends to be difficult for the blood supply, with school spring breaks and increased travel making blood donations less of a priority. These factors are now coinciding with increasing COVID cases and a potential fifth wave of the pandemic,” said Andrea Cefarelli, Senior Executive Director at New York Blood Center. “One blood donation has the ability to save up to three lives. We highly encourage all who are able to donate today to help New Yorkers who need it most.”

It only takes one hour to donate, and a single donation can save multiple lives. Roughly one in seven hospital admissions require a blood transfusion. Those in need include: cancer patients, accident, burn, or trauma victims, transplant recipients, surgery patients, chronically transfused patients suffering from sickle cell disease or thalassemia, and many more.

 To make an appointment at a local blood drive, donors can call 1-800-933-2566 or visit by visiting nybc.org.

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It’s the season for giving.

New York Blood Center will hold its 9th annual blood drive at The Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington on Sunday, Dec. 26 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Your donation will help to save up to THREE lives. Our community hospitals need your help! Please share this lifesaving gift.

All donors at The Paramount Blood Drive will also receive one (1) pair of tickets to any one of these upcoming shows…while they last!

*The Disco Nights – Friday, January 7th (DISCO), *Best of The Eagles – Thursday, January 14th (CLASSIC ROCK), *Jimmy Kenny & The Pirate Beach Band – Saturday, January 15th (TROP ROCK), *Scotty McCreery – Thursday, January 27th (COUNTRY), *Icons of Vinyl – Friday, January 28th (CLASSIC ROCK), *Voyage – Friday, February 4th (JOURNEY TRIBUTE), *Randy Houser – Thursday, February 10th (COUNTRY)

Eligibility Criteria:
• Bring ID with signature or photo.
• Minimum weight 110 lbs.
• Eat well (low fat) & drink fluids
• No tattoos for past 12 months
• Age 16 – 75 (16-year olds must have parental permission. Age 76 and over need doctor’s note)

For questions concerning medical eligibility call 1-800-688-0900 www.nybc.org.
For more information, please call The Paramount @ 631-673-7300.

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Brookhaven Town Hall, 1 Independence Hill, Farmingville hosts a blood drive on Wednesday, Dec. 15 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the 2nd floor auditorium. Appointments preferred by calling 1-800-933-2566 or by visiting www.nybc.org. All donors will be entered into a Home for the Holidays sweepstakes and receive a McDonald’s voucher. For more information, call 631-451-9100.

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Assemblyman Michael Fitzpatrick, in partnership with the New York Blood Center, will host a blood drive on Monday, July 19 from 2 to 8 p.m. in the second floor Meeting Room at the Hauppauge Fire Department, 855 Wheeler Road, Hauppauge. While walk-ins are welcome, appointments are preferred by visiting www.nybc.org/donate or call 800-933-BLOOD.

New York Blood Center has the following COVID-19 policies in place:

·         Please wear a face covering if not vaccinated;

·         Temperatures will be taken upon arrival; and

·         All donors must be symptom-free for 14 days if recovering from COVID-19, must not have a positive COVID-19 diagnosis in the past 14 days or be self-quarantining.

 This blood drive will not be testing for COVID-19. Individuals are encouraged to contact their healthcare provider for such a test.

 Roughly 2,000 blood donations are needed each day in the New York-New Jersey region. Especially helpful are type O negative blood donations, which are universally accepted by all patients regardless of blood type. However, all blood types are needed. Each blood donation can save up to three lives. Donations are used in a variety of scenarios and patient needs.

Questions? Call 631-724-2929.

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The Greenlawn Fire Department, 23 Boulevard Avenue, Greenlawn hosts its first blood drive of the year on Monday, Jan. 4 in the Meeting Room from 2:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Blood Donors are essential. The public health crisis and events across the county will continue to impact the blood supply. If you’re healthy and able to visit a donor center or blood drive, we are urging you to make an immediate appointment to help keep the blood supply strong.

Appointments are required – no walk-ins will be permitted.

CLICK HERE TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT

Questions? Call 631-261-9103.

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