Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
The New Rockford community hosted a blood drive with Vitalant on September 18 at First Lutheran Church, which helped collect a total of 59 units of blood products for patients in need.
A total of 55 individuals volunteered to donate blood and 48 individuals were able to successfully donate at the Vitalant blood drive on September 18. A total of seven donors also came forward to donate Power Red Cells (2RBC) which collects two units of red blood cells while returning platelets, plasma and a saline solution back to the donor. There were two people who volunteered for the first time!
Vitalant expressed their gratitude to MarJean Pfau and Sharon Lesmeister, who co-coordinated the drive, St. John Catholic Church and Bank Forward which sponsored the blood drive, and First Lutheran Church which provided the location, as well as others who assisted with the drive: Karen Anderson, Eunice Throlson, Connie Bjerke and Amy Perleberg, and Eddy County 4-H which provided refreshments.
The need for blood is constant and Vitalant strives to always keep a 5-day supply of every blood type on the shelf to be able to meet the needs of patients across the region. Trauma and burn patients, premature infants, heart surgery patients, organ transplant recipients and people fighting cancer all require blood transfusions for their care.
Blood donations are needed daily to maintain a strong blood supply and meet ongoing patient needs. Vitalant encourages healthy individuals to make blood donation a part of one’s regular routine to help meet the ongoing needs.
Donors can make a convenient appointment to give blood at http://www.donors.vitalant.org or by calling 877-25-VITAL. With each donation, donors receive a free total cholesterol test and earn reward points. The next blood drive is planned to be held on Monday, November 20 from 12:00 to 6:00 p.m. at First Lutheran Church.
Blood donation takes about an hour from check-in to refreshments, with the blood draw typically taking less than 10 minutes. Donors can save about 20 minutes by completing their Health History Questionnaire the day they donate on http://www.vitalant.org/health.
