Current situation
Blood donations are used for trauma care—specifically patients who are involved in accidents, chemotherapy and burn victims, said Cameron Palmer, the public relations specialist for the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center.
The Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center is a blood donation center that caters the Greater Houston area. The blood center hosts over 7,000 blood drives in the Greater Houston area each year, with high schools and universities playing a key role in mobile collections, Palmer said.
Blood donations are especially needed as more people travel and become prone to accidents, which Palmer said is typically during the holiday season. Traveling also leads to fewer donations, he said.
A closer look
In order for the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center to have a maintainable amount of blood supply, Palmer said the center must administer 1,000 blood donations per day, and the center strives to have a 3-day blood supply.
Palmer said this can be challenging at times since many regular donors are traveling during the holiday season.
It’s also common to see blood supplies drop during summer as well. High schools and universities mainly contribute to mobile collections, which are less available when school is out, Palmer said.
Severe weather events can also impact donor turnout, Palmer said.
Nationally, nonprofit humanitarian organization American Red Cross last January declared an emergency blood shortage, citing the lowest numbers of people giving over the past two decades, according to a Jan. 7, 2024 news release.
By the numbers
According to the American Red Cross:
- 6.8 million people donate blood in the U.S. every year
- 13.6 million units of whole blood and red blood cells collected in a year in the U.S.
- 40% fewer people are donating blood compared to 20 years ago
- 3 units in an average red blood cell transfusion, with a single car accident needing as many as 100 units
“Blood donations, they help save lives. ... There’s so many different reasons why people need blood," Palmer said.
