There is a severe blood shortage in Virginia and nationwide, according to the American Red Cross. The winter holidays, flu season and winter storms have significantly disrupted donations, which puts patients who rely on transfusions at risk.
The American Red Cross said its blood supply has dropped by about 35% over the past month, according to a news release.
There have been over 800 blood drives canceled nationally. Those drives were expected to collect over 20,000 units of blood and platelets, said Jonathan McNamara, regional communications director for the American Red Cross. Platelets are cells in blood that help form clots and stop bleeding. They are crucial for cancer and trauma patients, according to the American Red Cross.
During the months of January and February, in Virginia alone, the American Red Cross didn’t collect over 1,000 units of blood — one unit is roughly one donation from a person — due to cancellations.
“That is having a significant impact on our hospital partners and their ability to deliver blood to patients in need,” said McNamara. Typically, the blood goes to the patients with the most urgent need first.
This is a more significant and sustained shortage than they have seen in several years, he said. It can affect hospitals’ ability to address cancer patient treatments and patients seeking non-emergency treatment. It will also take weeks to fix, if there is an increase in sustained donations and no further disruptions.
If a hospital has a shortage of blood, it might mean they would choose to reschedule elective surgeries or choose to give patients less blood than normal, McNamara explained. Such delays or smaller transfusions could significantly impact patients with conditions like sickle cell disease or inherited red blood cell disorders, and lead to debilitating pain and other avoidable health outcomes.
Take action
Donate blood to help address the shortage in Virginia and nationwide
There is a nationwide shortage of blood due to the lower donations volume during the winter holidays, flu season and recent winter storm.
If you want to donate, see the Red Cross page for eligibility and to find a blood drive near you. If you don’t see anything available immediately, schedule for weeks in advance, said Jonathan McNamara, Regional Communications Director for American Red Cross. He added that all blood types are needed.
Organizations that want to support a blood drive can apply to host a drive with the Red Cross.
“Every hospital, every doctor, is going to manage their supply differently when they are under a shortage protocol.”
Virginia blood donations don’t necessarily stay in Virginia. The system is designed so that blood donations can move constantly across state lines in order to best meet demand. UVA Health and Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital in Charlottesville are also in the recipient network for the American Red Cross.
UVA Health spokesperson Eric Swensen said there is indeed a national and local shortage, but the hospital has managed to avoid meaningful impacts to its services thanks to its robust Transfusion Medicine Service and an attending physician who covers blood bank service needs 24/7.
“We have been actively triaging and monitoring our inventory, and because of this, we have so far been able to avoid any significant impacts to clinical services at UVA Health. But it will only stay that way if donors do get out and donate so that our blood suppliers can replenish their inventory,” said Swensen.
According to McNamara, to address the shortage, the American Red Cross would need weeks of increased turnout from donors to stabilize the supply. That’s only if there is no other disruption to the supply, like another burst of winter weather.
“The demand never stops,” he said. “There’s no substitute for their donation of blood to the Red Cross.”
