Behrend helps out Blood Bank after winter storm

The record-breaking storm that swept across Erie during break was devastating to many local businesses and households. People were stuck at home, their cars buried under mountains of snow, and for the Erie Community Blood Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania and Western New York (CBB), it was disastrous for donations. Both walk-ins and scheduled donations suffered immensely.

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On January 10th Penn State Behrend received a visit from the Erie Community Blood Bank. The bloodmobile parked outside the Burke building Wednesday inorder for students to donate blood. The visit was fitting as January in national blood donor month.

Marty Hamilton a Phlebotomists for the Erie Community Blood Bank explained that the snow from the storm cancelled approximately 7-8 drives for the blood mobile from his branch alone. One, he noted, was scheduled to attend Erie High School, but the school cancelled that day, and as such the drive was cancelled. Another drive was stopped due to temperature-related issues with the jacks on their “bloodmobile,” which made it unfit to use for the day. Hamilton has stated that it was a minor issue and it has since been fixed. The storm didn’t stop all donations, however, as some dedicated donors braved the storm to make both blood and platelet donations.

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Platelet donations aren’t the same as the donations one would see at a blood drive, because platelet donations must be scheduled, unlike Whole Blood or 2RBC donations that can be done with simple walk-ins.

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 Hamilton stated that even if donors still came in for their scheduled donating times, the platelets they donated still had to be tested for blood-related illnesses like anemia. He said that platelets are only useful for around a week after they’re donated, and that the tests normally take around three days. With additional poor road conditions the tests took longer to return, but thankfully were still viable.

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The Red Cross is also seeing widespread panic, issuing calls for donors all across the country because of the winter freeze. There’s been over 200 reported drives cancelled, and unlike canned food or firewood, “Blood can't be stockpiled. It has to be there right at the time it's needed, and that's why it's so urgently needed right now,” as stated by Suzy Defrancis of the Red Cross. The Red Cross estimates nearly 5,500 red blood and platelet donations were lost due to the weather.

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As the storm settled a little, the CBB went to work rescheduling drives, and the Erie community came together to donate more, to try to pick up the lost time. One drive held in Millcreek boasted over 50 donors, which is a very strong turnout. On average, according to Hamilton, a drive can get around 20-30 donors, though he said that “it [was] hard to tell because drives are very hit-or-miss.” The drive was spectacular, but the CBB is still facing a shortage, and with current formidable weather forecasts as they are, shortages could become a national crisis.

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The weather may be just beginning, however, and potential donors are being encouraged to act quickly. Every donor affects about three people, because donated blood is split into three separate and equally important parts that are necessary in hospitals everywhere. For more information, visit their website at fourhearts.org, or call toll-free at 1-877-842-0631.