FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:Health
Issues Brief
Central
Florida’s Blood Shortage --Blood is scarcer than water
August 2001
As we all know, Central Florida is still experiencing a severe drought - even though the rains have returned. We’re also experiencing another type of drought - that of blood. The Central Florida Blood Bank’s supply is low - it’s being used far faster than it’s being donated.
Factors contributing to the blood shortage
One is the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) deferrals such as those for people who are HIV positive or who test positive for Hepatitis C. The newest deferral is the Variant Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease (vCJD ) - the human form of "mad cow disease," which causes neurological deterioration, dementia and death. Currently, there is no evidence that vCJD has been or can be transmitted by blood transfusions to humans, but the FDA has issued the deferral as a precaution. With this new deferral, Florida is predicted to see an immediate loss of an estimated six to eight percent of its donors.
In addition to the new deferral, other contributing factors to Central Florida’s decline in the number of blood donors include:
Our fast growing population has resulted in increases in blood utilization three times the rate of the national average.
Our transfusion rate has grown over the past year by 13 percent, while our donor base has only grown by eight percent.
Advancements in medical technology mean that we’re doing procedures today we couldn’t do five or 10 years ago, resulting in more surgeries and procedures increasing the need for blood.
The blood shortage isn’t just affecting Florida, but the nation as a whole. Factors contributing to the national blood shortage are:
The aging population of veterans from World War II and the Korean War
The educational misperceptions over the risk of contracting AIDS by donating
The cultural barriers to blood donation in fast growing minority population segments
The aging baby-boomer generation
Steps being taken to resolve the shortage
While we’re not at a crisis level yet, as in other cities around the country, we could soon get there. Hospitals in large cities such as New York, Philadelphia and Cincinnati are canceling elective surgeries, postponing treatments and reducing the dose of blood patients receive in an effort to conserve their depleted supplies.
In order to sustain our blood supply, we need individuals to donate consistently where it becomes a habit versus something that is done occasionally or in a time of disaster. Therefore, Florida Hospital is working with the Central Florida Blood Bank and our local hospital systems to target our employees, visitors and patients’ families to increase awareness and the number of donations.
However, our best efforts will fall short without the additional help of our community. Therefore on August 2, Florida Hospital - along with our other area hospitals - issued a Corporate Challenge to our community business leaders at a breakfast held at the Central Florida Blood Bank. Everyone was asked to sign a pledge card stating that they will encourage their employees to donate blood, raise the number of donors in their organization and increase the number of on-site drives.
"If we don’t begin to swing the pendulum back towards the supply side so that donations outpace demand, we will find ourselves in a serious situation," Rich Morrison, vice president of government relations and strategic planning said. "We need to take steps now to increase the number of blood donors in our community so we don’t end up in a situation like in New York City and other large US cities, where elective surgeries are being canceled."
In most cases, blood is usually used within 36 hours of being donated. Therefore, there isn’t a large amount of blood in reserve unless there are consistent blood donations coming in to replace what’s being used. The cushion of donations vs. blood used has dropped by 25 percent from 1999 to 2000.
"The Central Florida Blood Bank isn’t a blood bank anymore. It’s a blood exchange," Morrison explains. "It’s coming out of one arm and going into another. We need to build up a cushion so there’s a reserve to tap into if we need it."
For more information about the Corporate Challenge or if you have questions about blood donation, please contact the Central Florida Blood Bank at 407/999-8400.
Sources:
Central Florida Blood Bank
National Blood Data Resource Center
America’s Blood Centers
Associated Press
This Health
Issues release is located on the Internet at: http://www.floridahospital.org/
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