In response to the ongoing critical blood shortage on Long Island, South Nassau Communities Hospital will be holding an emergency blood drive on Oct. 18 from 7 a.m. - 9 p.m.
To schedule an appointment to donate blood, call South Nassau’s Human Resources Department at (516) 632-4080. For medical questions concerning blood donations call 1-800-688-0900.
Eligible blood donors must:
- Bring ID with signature or photo
- Weigh at least 110 pounds
- Be between the ages of 16 – 75 (16 year olds must have parental permission. Age 76 and over need doctors note)
- Eat well (low fat) and drink fluids before donating blood
- Have had no tattoos put on their body for past 12 months.
According to America’s Blood Centers:
- More than 4.5 million patients need blood transfusions each year in the U.S. and Canada.
- Someone needs blood every two seconds.
- About 1 in 7 people entering a hospital need blood.
- One pint of blood can save up to three lives.
- Much of today's medical care depends on a steady supply of blood from healthy donors.
- Children being treated for cancer, premature infants and children having heart surgery need blood and platelets from donors of all types, especially type O.
- The No. 1 reason blood donors say they give is because they "want to help others."
- If all blood donors gave three times a year, blood shortages would be a rare event (The current average is about two.).
- If only one more percent of all Americans would give blood, blood shortages would disappear for the foreseeable future.
