Blood drive planned to address nationwide blood shortage

The USA is experiencing a blood shortage. In Jan. 2020, Red Cross declared its first-ever national blood crisis, desperate for donations.

The Upper School Council collaborates with a representative from American Red Cross who reaches out annually. USC then finds eligible donors to contribute to the drive. Senior Clea Gaitas-Sur said, “We run a sign-up booth about two weeks before the blood drive, and day of, USC members find alternates, monitor recovery, and run the sign-in and sign-out.”

Sophomore Cerena Karmaliani said, “What tends to happen is we get like double or triple the amount of people that we need, but a lot of people back out last minute, so on the day of we get the exact amount that we would need.”

According to the American Red Cross, someone in the United States requires blood every two seconds. That is an estimated 29,000 units of blood needed every day.

Donors will be providing one pint of blood out of the 10 to 11 pints contained in the human body. The process takes around 10 minutes, though donors are encouraged to remain in the area for 15 minutes after to ensure no complications ensue.

“It’s a really cool opportunity. If you’re eligible, please try and donate. If you can help in any little way, it helps a big issue,” Karmaliani said.

The blood drive is hosted today in the Small Gym. All reserved slots were filled in advance.

This story was originally published in the March issue of The Rubicon. It was updated to include the correct location of the Blood Drive, as it was moved from Driscoll to the Small Gym.