LIFELINE Blood Services and West Tennessee Healthcare announced today that West Tennessee’s blood supply is again at critically low levels.
“I realize that we have issued more critical appeals in the last fifteen months than ever before, but we have no other choice—our blood supply really is that low,” said Caitlin Roach, Marketing Manager with LIFELINE.
To illustrate the severity of the issue, on Monday Jackson-Madison County General Hospital had half the preferred amount of O+ blood on their shelves; LIFELINE had no more to send them and was only able to find six units to import in from another blood center.
The shortage is caused by several issues and is a problem nationwide, which hinders LIFELINE’s ability to import blood from other blood centers. From an individual perspective, many donors have fallen out of the habit of giving over the course of the pandemic. Some are still leery about getting out to donate, while others are choosing not to give because masks are still required. Scheduling mobile drives is also an issue. Some industries are not allowing mobile drives at their sites, and others are having to turn LIFELINE away because they do not have enough staff members to allow those who are working to donate on company time. The staffing shortage is impacting LIFELINE as well, as they do not currently have enough staff to ensure that all mobile drives happen once scheduled.
“It seems like everywhere we turn, we hit another roadblock in reaching our donors,” said Roach.
Moreover, the usage of blood across West Tennessee is up. Local hospitals have used 721 more units than this time last year, using 308 more units this April than in April 2020. Add in the fact that LIFELINE is down approximately 750 units for the year, and the problems are clear.
“Our hospital volumes have been incredibly high this year, and not just related to COVID-19 patients. Our patients rely on your donations for their care, and we need those donations more than ever. We cannot manufacture blood products, so please consider donating TODAY!” said Deann Thelen, CEO of Jackson-Madison County General Hospital. “This is a critical shortage, and we need everyone to donate in order to save lives. You never know when you will be the one on the receiving end in the hospital needing blood.”
Lifeline Blood Services, located at 183 Sterling Farms Drive, is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Walk-ins are welcome. However, if you would like to make an appointment, you may text the word “schedule” to 999-777 or, to speak with someone about donating blood, call 731.427.4431, ext. 0.
The rest of this week’s Community Mobile Blood Drives are listed below:
Tuesday, May 25
Paris: AHC – 2 pm to 5 pm
Wednesday, May 26
Ripley: TCAT – 9 am to 12 pm
Paris: Henry County Medical Center – 9 am to 12 pm; 12:30 pm to 4 pm Adamsville: Adamsville Healthcare & Rehab – 12 pm to 4 pm
Thursday, May 27
Jackson: Jackson-Madison County General Hospital – 7 am to 11:30 am; 12 pm to 6 pm
Dyersburg: Security Bank – 12 pm to 4 pm
Friday, May 28
Bruceton: Life Care Center – 11 am to 3 pm
Newbern: First United Methodist Church – 12 pm to 6 pm
“Going into a holiday weekend with blood supply levels this low terrifies me,” said Roach. “If you are capable of donating, please do so in the next couple of days. The lives of West Tennesseans are absolutely depending on you.”
LIFELINE provides blood services to 20 West Tennessee counties, including 17 hospitals and 14 emergency helicopter service locations. Annually, the Center collects
approximately 26,000 blood products (red cell units, platelets, plasma, etc.) to meet the needs of patients. Of that total, 75% of those products are usually collected on the bloodmobiles across West Tennessee. LIFELINE also provides reference lab and cross-matching services to healthcare facilities. For more information, visit lifelinebloodserv.org.
West Tennessee Healthcare is a public, not-for-profit healthcare system with locations serving 19 counties in West Tennessee and Southeast Missouri. The mission of West Tennessee Healthcare is to improve the health and well-being of the communities we serve while providing exceptional and compassionate care. For more information, visit www.wth.org.