Blood bank supplies run dangerously low between May and August as seasonal residents take flight for the summer and as year-round residents hunker down, seeking refuge from scorching temperatures. Donating blood also takes a back seat to summer vacations, picnics and ball games and quickly falls off the to-do list. As such, the blood bank, which serves six hospitals in the region and is the only blood collection agency in the desert, falls critically short of deposits. This week, for example, the bank had only 31 units of A-positive blood on hand, well below what is considered the critical level of 35 units. The desired level is to have 50 units of A-positive blood in the bank.
Similar shortages exist for O-positive blood.
One trauma, one head-on collision could bankrupt the blood bank, jeopardizing lives. The undersupply also could threaten recovery for accident victims, surgery and cancer patients and others needing blood transfusions. The Coachella Valley is not unique in its shortage. Nationally, blood donations are decreasing about 1 percent a year while the demand is increasing by 1 percent a year. Add to that the fact that nearly 60 percent of Americans are estimated to be eligible donors, but only 5 percent donate.