AABB Disaster Task Force Urges Blood Donations to Fend Off Imminent Shortages

The Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies’ Interorganizational Task Force on Domestic Disasters and Acts of Terrorism (AABB Disaster Task Force), of which the AHA is a member, on July 24 issued a statement that the U.S. blood supply is at significant risk for blood shortages. The reduced supply is due to weeks of decline in blood donations and is more pronounced in certain regions of the country. In some areas, blood collectors are already reporting an impact on the availability of blood for some patients.

Call to Action

Hospitals and health systems are strongly encouraged to urge eligible individuals in their communities to make and keep an appointment to donate blood at their nearest blood collection location. Regular blood donations are a critical resource for hospitals and health systems to provide lifesaving care for their communities. When blood donations decline, the consequences are felt by patients who depend on life-saving transfusions. The public understands the importance of blood and blood products and often volunteers to donate when made aware of a supply shortage.

The AHA urges its members to share the following links to help eligible individuals find their closest blood collection location.

• AAAB, www.WhereToDonateBlood.org, (301) 907-6977
• America’s Blood Centers, www.americasblood.org, (202) 393-5725
• American Red Cross, www.RedCrossBlood.org, 1-(800)-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767)

Resources

The following resources are provided to help AHA members in their continued efforts to be good stewards of blood and blood products.

• AHA Blood Management Toolkit.  Developed in collaboration with the AHA’s Physician Alliance Forum and the AABB, the toolkit provides resources for hospitals and health systems, clinicians and patients.
• Key Considerations for Providers and Patients. To reduce improper blood utilization, AABB provided five key considerations both providers and patients should consider to ensure they are “choosing wisely” about blood supply utilization.
• Recommendations for the Use of Group O Red Blood Cells. AABB released a bulletin outlining recommendations for the use of group O red blood cells.
• Patient Blood Management Infographic.  To ensure hospitals and health systems can quickly communicate the importance of patient blood management practices, AABB developed a two-page infographic detailing the benefits of implementing proper patient blood management programs.

Further Questions

If you have questions, please contact Roslyne Schulman, AHA director of policy, at rschulman@aha.org.