Emergency blood supplies in Oregon hospitals are at vulnerable levels across Oregon. In Douglas County, the American Red Cross reports life-saving blood donations are at a critical low.
Val Gordon works for the Red Cross in Coos and Douglas counties. As we approach the height of summer, she said sign- ups for blood donations are very low and there’s been a lot of “no shows.”
Gordon said this is serious because hospitals rely on a steady supply of donor blood. “I did talk to a doctor and I asked, ‘what do you do when you first come in? What’s the very first thing on your agenda?’ And the doctor said, ‘I check my blood supply and when I do that, I determine which surgeries I’m actually going to do.’”
Gordon said blood drives are happening now in your zip code. Donation takes about an hour. The Red Cross finds that every two seconds, someone in the U.S. requires emergency blood.
Click here to make an appointment to donate blood wherever you live.
