Blood Drive
Blood Supply Critically Low as Outside Temperatures Rise
A blood drive will be held on Thursday, July 26 at the Croton Free Library, 171 Cleveland Drive from 2:30 P.M. to 8 P.M. Donors must be at least 16 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds and be in good health. A parental permission form must be signed for donors who are sixteen. To make an appointment or for further information, please contact Amy Cobb
The summertime is always a critical period for blood donations. School recess, summer vacations and uncomfortably hot weather have a serious impact on the number of blood drives scheduled and the number of donors who turnout at each drive. Regardless of these factors, local hospitals continue to demand approximately 400 units of blood products to meet patient needs each day. The New York Blood Center reports it is already experiencing a shortage and asks all blood donors, especially those with the rarer negative blood types, to donate now. Donors with Rh negative blood types make up just 15% of the population. Rh negative blood can be transfused to a far larger percentage of patients, and is preferred for newborns and other children who may require transfusions. O negative is the “universal donor,” and is especially needed in emergency situations when
there is not adequate time to determine the patient’s blood type. |
