Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Illinois facing critical shortage of blood

Posted in:

Illinois

The Illinois Coalition of Community Blood Centers put out a plea Monday for organizations to host blood drives in light of what it called “a critical shortage of blood in Illinois.”

There are two reasons for the shortage, according to Margaret Vaughn, the coalition’s government affairs director.

She said typically 60% of donations come from off-site blood drives, but drives normally hosted by businesses are not being held because employees are still working from home.

Also, demand for blood has spiked due to the May return of elective surgeries coupled with a surge of patients who put off needed surgeries for months because of COVID-19 concerns.

“Now, demand is sky high because the people who put off treatment for three months are sicker,” Vaughn said. “There is a backlog with all these cases. There is concern with how they’re going to get through the rest of the summer. It’s not unique to Illinois. They are in this mess all over the country. We really want to regroup now.”

Margaret is an old pal of mine, so do me a favor and help her organization out. Thanks!

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 9:05 am

Comments

Donated in March so I am able to do it again. Thanks for the post.

Comment by bogey golfer Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 9:57 am
Good to know.
Thanks for the information.

Comment by Back to the Future Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 10:26 am
Making appointments days in advance does not work for me. I do not control my schedule. I probably won’t be able to donate again until they allow me to just drop in.

Comment by Nilwood Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 10:28 am
Hubs tried to donate through Red Cross but they don’t have appointments in the evenings or on weekends which makes it difficult for him to donate. His last donation in April was through another agency and the people working in the office were horrible. Groups accepting donations need to work on how they are collecting as well to be honest…

Comment by ktkat1 Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 10:43 am
If you donate with the Red Cross, they will test your blood for COVID antibodies and let you know the results in a couple days.

Comment by My Button is Broke... Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 10:55 am
Thanks Rich. Your post helped push us over the edge to sponsor a blood drive at our company. Emailed our local Red Cross Chapter to get it going. Our business has been very lucky in this tough time and we need to give back to our community.

Comment by A Watcher Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 11:07 am
I echo her request. I’m fortunate in that I’m physically able to donate, and was able to get in on Saturday. It’s an even safer process now than before - masks for all; I was asked to wait in the building’s lobby to first sanitize my hands and then have my temperature taken before I was allowed in to begin the donation process; and the rest of the process was smooth, safe and easy!

If you haven’t given for a while, the Red Cross has something called “Rapid Pass” that allows you to answer the 30-odd required questions at home the morning of the donation. It then provides a Q-code that gets scanned at the donation site to help move things along.

You’re treated like a rock star at every step; you get snacks at the end of the donation; and you can avoid doing anything you don’t want for the rest of the day by saying, “Sorry, I’d love to, but post-donation instructions.” Please donate if you’re able!

Comment by Johnny Tractor Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 11:47 am
Gave blood yesterday at the Twisted Hippo. Thought they would be replacing my pint with a pint but the bar was closed. This one is worth going out for. Heartland / Vivalant? also allows you to read the materials and answer the questionnaire on line before you arrive.

Comment by Peters Piece Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 12:10 pm
Just make a law and mandate that one MUST donate blood. Illinois leftists have no respect for individual liberty and property rights anyway.

Comment by Doug Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 12:13 pm
Started donating again when Covid arrived, intend to continue every 56 days. Easy peasy, and free juice boxes for all!

Comment by LoyalVirus Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 12:17 pm
Just scheduled an appt. to donate. Thanks for posting this!

Comment by Hottot Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 12:51 pm
Springfield’s Central Illinois Community Blood Center is great. Efficient and friendly staff with never any hassles. Treats at the end and occasional swag.

My blood type is in extremely high demand, especially for neonates/pre-term infants, so they usually schedule me at my next eligible date for donation before I can escape out the door.

Comment by Hieronymus Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 3:11 pm
It would be beneficial for the Feds to let LGTBQ folks donate. It makes me wonder how many Blood Donation orgs are out there pushing for that.

Comment by MadManMad Tuesday, Jun 23, 20 @ 3:42 pm
== Just make a law and mandate that one MUST donate blood.==
Do they accept blood of people who wear tinfoil hats?

Comment by 17% Solution Wednesday, Jun 24, 20 @ 10:14 am