The American Red Cross is issuing an urgent plea for blood and platelet donations.
Billy Brill, an account manager for the Red Cross, said the need for blood usually goes up in the summer.
“You're seeing more elective surgeries being scheduled, and hospitals want to have units on the shelves for those,” Brill said. “And more physical activity and outdoor activity leads to more injuries and more need overall, so it's a combination of those two factors."
At the same time, the Red Cross said it’s facing an urgent need for more blood and platelet donors. Scheduled donations, which account for 90 percent of all blood donations, dropped sharply in recent weeks, causing the blood supply to drop several thousand units. And many high schools and colleges that host blood drives are out for the summer.
Brill, a longtime blood donor, is urging everyone who is eligible to look for a blood drive near them or visit donation centers in Liverpool or New Hartford. He said each donation has a ripple effect.
"I'm impacting a patient, their family, their community that they're a part of, people that are rooting for them, hoping for speedy recoveries. I as a donor have a role in that whole situation,” he said.
People who donate before June 28 will receive a $15 e-gift card to a merchant of their choice and will be entered into a national contest for a chance to win a $7500 gift card. Everyone will also receive a coupon for a free pint of ice cream at Stewart’s Shops.
For more information and blood donation locations, visit redcrossblood.org.
