Issue link: https://tmcpulse.uberflip.com/i/1010198
T M C » P U L S E | A U G U S T 2 0 1 8 18 Blood Needed Now T he well-orchestrated blood business, which func- tions with a sense of urgency even under ideal con- ditions, came to an unexpected halt last year when Hurricane Harvey flooded the Houston region. Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center was unable to operate for four days, highlighting an often-overlooked aspect of hurricane preparedness: Adequate reserves in blood banks. "It's important for blood to be on the shelf in a situation like this," said Joshua Buckley, the blood center's director of marketing. "It has provided us an opportunity to educate people on why it's important to donate all the time and not just during times of tragedy or crisis." The closure meant that the blood bank's recovery not only required quickly restarting collections upon reopen- ing, but catching up on thousands of missed donations. On average, Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center must bring in 800 donations daily to meet the needs of the community. "We were closed for four days and that's about 3,200 donations we missed out on," Buckley said. "We had enough blood on the shelves to make it through the storm, but we were pretty critically low on supplies. Once we opened four days later, we needed a boost from donors and that's what we got. We were able to make up that amount in the first two days we reopened." Summer slump Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center opened in 1975. The nonprofit, independent blood center serves more than 170 hospitals and health care institutions in a 26-county region and augments the internal blood banks at several Texas Medical Center facilities. The challenge of maintaining blood bank reserves during hurricane season, which began June 1 and extends through Nov. 30, is complicated by a summer slump in blood drives and donations. "About 40 percent of our mobile collections come from high schools and colleges. During the summer, high schools and colleges are out, so we don't have blood drives with them," Buckley said. "Notoriously, in the blood bank- ing business, that's a tough time of year to collect blood, so we have to figure out some promotions to get people to come out and donate during those slower times." All about blood Whole blood has three components: Red blood cells, plate- lets and plasma. All three parts can be separated from a whole blood donation or donors can give one component. Platelets have a five-day shelf life, red blood cells have a 42-day shelf life and plasma can be frozen for up to one year. Within the four major blood groups, there are eight different blood types: A+, A-, B+, B-, AB+, AB-, O+ and O-. O+ is the most common blood type. O- is universal, which means that this type can be given to everyone, but people with this type can only receive O- blood. Buckley offers a practical answer when asked what type is in the highest demand: "We need the most of the blood that's not on the shelf." Emergency preparedness Hurricane Harvey highlighted the impact of natural disas- ters and other emergencies on blood banks nationwide. Washington, D.C.-based America's Blood Centers—the largest network of community-based, independent blood programs in the United States and Canada—spoke out pub- licly after the hurricane. The organization's vast network of members, including Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center, provides more than half of the U.S. blood supply. (continued) PART OF HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS IS AN AMPLE SUPPLY OF BLOOD h u r r i c a n e r e a d y B y C i n d y G e o r g e Facing page: Sorted O+ blood rests on metal shelves inside refrigerated closets at Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center.