Several efforts are underway. Remember together, we can save a life. Minimum blood supply is betwwen 51,192 - 76,788 units. Critical blood supply is less than 9,760 units. Critical blood supply is less than 2,335 units.
Minimum level represents a two-day supply for the system.
Critical level represents a one-day supply for the system. The American Red Cross annually furnishes nearly half of the nation s blood, supplying 6.3 million pints of blood from 4.5 million donors. The crucial element needed to maintain this critical supply is ongoing voluntary blood donations. Only five percent of eligible Americans 8 million donate blood, making it difficult to provide a traditional safety margin of a three-day blood supply. Recent studies indicated that a blood sample from a donor s finger is a more accurate and less variable indicator of the hematocrit level than one taken from the ear.