How you can help with the critically low supply of blood

Blood supplies are at their lowest level in more than a decade, and blood collection agencies are desperately working to get donations. There was even a report in USA Today last week that the Krispy Kreme doughnut chain is donating free pastries to blood donors. A blood bank in New Jersey is offering tickets to the Super Bowl.

Here in the Tristate region, mostly you’ll just get a cookie and a juice after you make your donation but you’ll also know you’ve helped friends and neighbors and perhaps even yourself or a loved one.

Blood drives in the region are mostly scheduled for February,, see list this page.

But some donors are concerned about giving blood to the American Red Cross, which suffered from reports that the agency is charging money to hospitals for the blood that is given to them free by donors.

Marina Ballantine is spokesman for the Nuvance hospital group, which includes Sharon Hospital. She answered several questions about the blood shortage and about the economics of blood donations.

Is Nuvance impacted by the national blood shortage crisis?

Yes, the blood shortage is ubiquitous in its impact among health systems across the nation. However, Nuvance Health has strong relationships and is in close communication with our blood bank partners to navigate our operations during this time.

Do hospitals pay fees for blood?

The fees you refer to are related to safety and quality protocols at the blood banks, to ensure each donation undergoes a rigorous testing and processing procedure, such as testing for Hepatitis, HIV and other infections. Blood banks charge this fee to ensure all supplies are safe and sterile for our use. Folks should not be dissuaded from giving blood.

It does not cost anything for our community members to donate blood, whether it be red blood cells or platelets, for example.

Where does Nuvance Health purchase blood ?

Nuvance Health partners with regional blood suppliers such as the American Red Cross (ARC), New York Blood Center (NYBC) and Rhode Island Blood Center (RIBC).

These groups have been greatly collaborative in our efforts, doing everything they can to support our facilities amid the blood shortage.  ARC and NYBC serve our New York hospitals; ARC and RIBC serve our Connecticut hospitals.

Is there a blood collection operation that Nuvance Health recommends?

We strongly encourage eligible individuals to donate wherever it is most convenient for them.

Nuvance Health does not prefer or recommend any group. All donations go into a regional blood bank, which is then allocated and distributed to hospitals by the supplier (ARC, NYBC or RIBC).

Upcoming Blood Drives

Unfortunately, no blood drives are scheduled imminently in the region.

An ARC drive scheduled for Feb. 18 at the Salisbury Congregational Church is already full, but another one is scheduled there for Tuesday, March 1, between 1 and 5 p.m.

An ARC drive will be held at the Salisbury School on March 23 and there will be one on March 27 at the Seventh Day Adventist Church in North Canaan, on Route 7 across from Geer.

The soonest ARC drive in the region is at Nuvance’s Norwalk Hospital on Friday, Feb. 25, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

To schedule an appointment and see all area ARC blood drives, go to www.RedCrossBlood.org.

The New York Blood Center is hosting a mobile blood drive on Wednesday, Feb. 23, from 3 to 7:30 p.m. at 4988 Route 22.

You can sign up at www.donate.nybc.org/donor/schedules/drive_schedule/289884.

If you don’t mind driving a half hour or so to Kingston, N.Y., there will be several NYBC drives coming up, www.donate.nybc.org. You must be 17 or older, in good health and weigh more than 110 pounds to donate blood.