Hospitals Can’t Get Back to Normal Without More Blood. Here Are 7 Ways You Can Help

A shortage of blood donations and drives means patients who already faced COVID-related delays for operations could face more.

3:50 PM

Author | Kara Gavin

pink hearts one heart filled and another half filled with blood for donations
Getty Images

Editor's note: Information on the COVID-19 crisis is constantly changing. For the latest numbers and updates, keep checking the CDC's website. For the most up-to-date information from Michigan Medicine, visit the hospital's Coronavirus (COVID-19) webpage

Interested in a COVID-19 clinical trial? Health research is critical to ending the COVID-19 pandemic. Our researchers are hard at work to find vaccines and other ways to potentially prevent and treat the disease and need your help. Sign up to be considered for a clinical trial at Michigan Medicine.

The heart surgeons are ready. The cancer nurses are ready. The organ transplant teams are ready.

In hospitals across America, medical teams are ready to get back to providing regularly scheduled care, despite the coronavirus pandemic.

But they can't do it unless they have a reliable supply of blood, and right now, that supply just isn't there.

Add in the threat of injuries from home fireworks shows and more road travel as July 4 and summer vacations approach, and the demand for blood at emergency rooms, trauma centers and burn units could also increase.

Robertson Davenport, M.D., heads the blood bank at Michigan Medicine, the University of Michigan's academic medical center and one of the busiest in the Midwest.

Right now, supplies are so low that he and his team have to choose which patients will get each unit of blood that comes in. The supply is nearly as short as it was in mid-March, when blood drives across America started getting canceled.

"Now, we have patients on the schedule for operations that were pushed back weeks or even months by the pandemic. A lack of blood could delay them further," he says. "I can't emphasize enough how much we need people to step forward and donate or host a blood drive now."

Here are seven ways you can help:

1. If you've given blood before, sign up to give it again.

If you gave whole blood in March or April, you're eligible to give whole blood again now.

If you haven't given since March because of worries about going out, rest assured that blood drive organizers have put in place many new safety measures. This includes masks for donors, staff and volunteers, and more space between people.

Those precautions also mean that each drive has fewer spots than usual. So, when you're looking for a new appointment, you may need to look at mid-July or later. Don't get frustrated – claim an appointment even if it's weeks from now.

SEE ALSO: Seeking Medical Care During COVID-19

To book your spot, visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-733-2767. Even after you make an appointment, you might get a phone call if a new drive opens up sooner.

And a bonus: For a limited time, donors at Red Cross drives will receive the results of an antibody test that will be conducted on their blood. This might indicate if they had COVID-19 earlier in the year, when the availability of testing for mild cases was very limited.

SEE ALSO: Need to Get Out of the House? Give Blood – It's Needed More Than Ever

2. If you've never given, now's the time.

Maybe you're not a fan of needles. Maybe you've always been too busy. Maybe you just turned 17, the minimum age to give. Or you just never thought about giving blood because you figured they had enough of your type.

Whatever your reason, the urgent need for blood to help patients who have waited months for care, or are having an emergency, should give you more reason to consider giving. Read about how to deal with common concerns about giving blood, and learn more about being a first-time donor.

MORE FROM MICHIGAN: Sign up for our weekly newsletter

3. If you think you aren't allowed to give, check again – the rules have changed.

It used to be that having a tattoo or piercing, or going to a country where malaria is common, meant you couldn't give blood for a year. Both of those rules have recently been relaxed to just three months, in order to encourage more donations while still protecting the safety of patients who receive blood products.

I can't emphasize enough how much we need people to step forward and donate or host a blood drive now.
Robertson Davenport, M.D.

Men who have sex with men, and women who have sex with such men, may also now give blood if they have not engaged in this type of sex for three months. Find out more about blood donation by LGBTQ+ individuals (LGBTQ+ stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual and Gender non-conforming).

And for people who have traveled or lived in areas where "mad cow disease" was found in earlier times, such as the United Kingdom, France and Ireland, may also be able to give, if they meet specific criteria.

4. If you've had a positive COVID-19 test in the past few months, your blood plasma could be used to treat current COVID-19 patients.

The blood of people who have had the disease recently can contain antibodies that could help boost the immune system of people who have the disease now. This is done by taking clear plasma from the blood of the recovered person, and giving it to a current patient as "convalescent plasma." Researchers are still working to see how effective this is for people who have serious COVID-19 symptoms, but to do so they need plasma from as many recovered people as possible. If you have tested positive in the past for COVID-19, learn about donating plasma.

Right now, people who have a positive antibody test, but didn't get tested for the virus when they were sick, cannot give convalescent plasma. This may change in future.

SEE ALSO: Keeping Our Patients Safe During COVID-19

5. If you can't give but you have time, volunteer to help at a drive.

Every blood drive now needs volunteers to screen donors as they arrive, to make sure coronavirus precautions are followed. If you have time, find out about blood drive volunteer opportunities in your area here.

6. If you own or run an organization that could host a drive, sign up to do it.

Auto dealerships. Hotel ballrooms. Fraternal organization halls. Large office buildings. Churches. Municipal buildings.

If you're affiliated with a business or organization that has a large indoor area that could serve as a blood drive organization, now's the time to contact the Red Cross or your local blood service organization and offer it for a blood drive.

Each drive has fewer appointments because of pandemic-related safety requirements, so that means more drive locations are needed than ever before. Learn what's involved.

U-M Pathologist: Why We Need You to Donate Blood Now

7. If you want to encourage others to give, here's how.

The Red Cross has a way to hold a "virtual blood drive" that encourages people to give at a location near them, in honor of a special person or occasion. You can start a virtual blood drive and share it via email, online gatherings and on social media. Learn more.

Like Podcasts? Add the Michigan Medicine News Break to your Alexa-enabled device or subscribe for daily updates on iTunesGoogle Play and Stitcher.


More Articles About: Preventative health and wellness Community Health Hospitals & Centers Covid-19 Surgery Pre- and Post-Operative Surgery Types Emergency & Trauma Care infectious disease
Health Lab word mark overlaying blue cells
Health Lab

Explore a variety of health care news & stories by visiting the Health Lab home page for more articles.

Media Contact Public Relations

Department of Communication at Michigan Medicine

[email protected]

734-764-2220

Stay Informed

Want top health & research news weekly? Sign up for Health Lab’s newsletters today!

Subscribe
Featured News & Stories emergency sign wording in red on brick building
Health Lab
Refining tools that spot risk of violence in young adults in urban ERs may save lives
Half of young adult patients treated in emergency departments in three urban hospitals across the country reported experiencing violence either as a victim or aggressor, including firearm violence, in the six months prior to seeking treatment, according to a University of Michigan study.
see through blue person with red lines running through neck to chest
Health Lab
What is phrenic neuropathy?
Phrenic neuropathy is a condition that impacts the nerve around the diaphragm making it harder to breathe, especially in situations such as lying down or being in water. The condition is treatable, with surgical intervention, physical therapy or by letting it heal over time.
three friends standing outside rogel cancer center building with big white ribbons
Health Lab
A lung cancer survivor shaping lung cancer advocacy
One woman's unexpected lung cancer diagnosis leads her to help many who aren't aware they're at risk of the disease.
A family discussing their family's medical history at Thanksgiving
Health Lab
Why you need to discuss your family health history at Thanksgiving
The holidays are a great time to discuss your family's medical history. Learn the importance of discussing your family's health history and how to bring it up.
Health Lab
Hosting guests with food allergies: 6 tips for a safe meal
Food allergies can be life threatening. To prepare for big family gatherings around eating, a patient's mother shares her kid's story and a Michigan Medicine food allergy expert provides simple advice for hosts to follow.
purple gloves close up holding piece
Health Lab
Recycled pacemakers function as well as new devices, international study suggests
Recycled pacemakers can function as well as new devices, a University of Michigan-led study suggests. These used and reconditioned devices have the potential to increase access to pacemaker therapy in low- and middle-income countries, where many patients cannot afford the treatment.