Hospitals across the country are currently struggling with severe blood shortages. This has caused a delay in crucial primary care and elective surgeries. If you have never donated blood or it’s been a while since your last donation, here are a few reasons why you may want to visit a local blood bank.

Why Visit Your Primary Care Blood Bank to Provide a Donation?

1. Help Those In Need

Blood transfusions are performed by emergency and primary care physicians every day for individuals coming into the hospital after an accident or for a planned surgery. Cancer patients might also require blood platelet transfusions if their blood marrow stops making enough, which could put them at risk of dangerous bleeding. In many cases, an average three-pint donation can save up to three lives.

2. Provide Rare Blood Types

About 38% of the population is eligible to donate blood, but only about 3% of these individuals actually give. For a successful transfusion of cells or platelets, the donor and recipient must have compatible blood types. This means there isn’t always enough supply to meet demand. 

Anyone capable of donating helps to improve this ratio in their area, but if you have O-negative red blood cells (7% of the population) or AB plasma (4% of the population), you can donate to anyone.

3. Get a Checkup

When you donate blood, the nurse taking your donation will check your blood pressure and temperature. This has frequently been how patients initially found out they were sick or have high blood pressure.

Before your blood is given to a patient, it will also be tested for several disease markers, including hepatitis, HIV, and West Nile Virus. Today, if the patient has had COVID-19, the sample is also tested for associated antibodies. If you have these antibodies, you can also provide plasma to help patients currently battling this virus.

Taylor Regional Hospital hosts the American Red Cross on a regular basis. Our next donation date is September 16^th 2021. To register and/or find additional dates, please visit redcrossblood.org. For nearly 50 years, this hospital has provided outstanding medical care to Campbellsville, KY. Their physicians offer a wide range of surgical, urgent, and primary care services. Visit their website to learn more about their departments, and call (270) 465-3561 with any questions.