Blood shortage sparks call for donors.Byline: Tim Christie The Register-Guard Blood banks around the region are appealing for donors to open a vein to stem a critical blood shortage. The blood supply is so low that doctors may be forced to cancel elective surgeries elective surgery Surgery Any operation that can be performed with advanced planning–eg, cholecystectomy, hernia repair, colonic resection, coronary artery bypass , said Christine Stockdale, spokeswoman for Lane Memorial Blood Bank. But no surgeries have yet been canceled locally, she said. The most urgent blood need is for A and O types. The bank is down to a two-day supply of Type O blood, the "universal donor u·ni·ver·sal donor n. A person whose red blood cells do not contain agglutinogen A or B and are therefore not agglutinated by plasma containing either of the ordinary isoagglutinins, alpha or beta; a person who has group O blood. " blood that can be given to anyone in an emergency, she said. She appealed to community members to make a donation. "Let's not Let's Not is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov. It was first published in Boston University Graduate Journal in December 1954. It was written for no payment as a favour to the journal, and later appeared in the collection Buy Jupiter. have anybody go without a lifesaving transfusion," she said. American Red Cross American Red Cross: see Red Cross. officials, meanwhile, have placed many Northwest hospitals on red alerts for three critical blood types and issued an emergency appeal as their blood supply reached the lowest level in two years. The most common blood types are at a one-day supply or less. Types O-positive, O-negative and A-negative are in such short supply that the Red Cross is able to provide only 50 percent of a request for those types. The American Red Cross' Pacific Northwest Region
The Northwest Region covers most of Oregon except for Lane County, which is covered by Lane Memorial Blood Bank. It's not clear what's driving the shortage, Stockdale said. "It's an ongoing problem that just seems to snowball snowball: see honeysuckle. ," she said. Several different factors converged to cause the shortage, said Amanda Calnan Vowels, spokeswoman for the Pacific Northwest Region of American Red Cross in Portland. A long stretch of hot weather meant many donors were drinking more water, which causes lower iron levels in their blood, and they had to defer giving, she said. Also, families busy getting back into the swing of school crossed blood donations off their to-do lists, she said. And the Labor Day Labor Day, holiday celebrated in the United States and Canada on the first Monday in September to honor the laborer. It was inaugurated by the Knights of Labor in 1882 and made a national holiday by the U.S. Congress in 1894. weekend made for a shorter collection week. "We've had an unusually difficult summer for Red Cross, not just here but nationally," she said. "That just kind of climaxed last week." GIVING BLOOD Call to make appointment: 484-9111, Lane Memorial Blood Bank, 2211 Willamette St. Potential donors must be at least 16 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds and be in good health. It takes about an hour to give blood. Information on bloodmobile blood·mo·bile n. A motor vehicle equipped for collecting blood from donors. drives in the community is available by calling 484-9111. |
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