Operation Iraqi Freedom and the Community Blood Supply

updated  04/01/03

Is blood needed for our service men and women?

The military does collect its own blood and relies foremost on that blood for its troops, but still depends on backup from civilian sources, especially in times of conflict. On March 28, 2003, the military asked for a limited amount of red blood cells and fresh frozen plasma. The Blood Center of New Jersey is part of a national agreement to provide blood if the military blood needs cannot be met by the military blood supply.

How will I know where my blood is going?

As a major community blood supplier in New Jersey, it is our responsibility to collect, monitor and distribute blood and blood products responsibly.  We must have blood available for the seriously ill and injured in our hospitals and must maintain an ongoing inventory for blood for our service men and women.  You will not know where your donation is going - only that it will be used to save someone's life.

Should I wait to donate blood?

Absolutely not.  It takes 24-48 hours to test and process a donated unit of blood.  If blood is needed in an emergency today, it will be the blood from donors who donated two or more days ago that will be used.  At this time, our inventory of certain blood types and components is very low. We need to build up our supplies now.

Why might you ask me to hold off on donating or make an appointment for a future date?

Blood has a shelf life of 42 days and people can safely donate every 56 days.  We must ensure that there are eligible donors continually available to balance today's needs with next week's and next month's needs.  We do not know how long the war will go on and we must maintain the right balance so blood is not wasted, but is in a plentiful enough supply to be prepared for emergencies. We also ask that you fill out a pledge form so we may contact you when you are needed.  You can fill one out at any of our fixed sites or on line at www.bloodnj.org.

What should I do if I want to coordinate a blood drive at my place of employment, community or faith-based group?

Call us!  We will work with you to identify a date and help you with promotion, publicity and recruitment.  Call Brenda McEntyre  at 800-652-5663, ext. 141.  Depending on the current schedule of blood drives, we may ask you to select a date one or two months down the road, or perhaps just help us promote immediate drives by directing people to those sites.  We must continually monitor current needs and prepare for future needs. 

Who needs blood right now?

The need for blood is great.  On any given day, an average of 34,000 units of red blood cells is needed.  Blood transfusions often are needed for trauma victims - due to accidents and burns - heart surgery, organ transplants, and patient receiving treatment of leukemia, cancer or other diseases, such as sickle cell disease and thalassemia.  With an aging population and advances in medical treatments and procedures requiring blood transfusions, the demand for blood continues to increase.

What are the criteria for blood donation?

To be eligible to donate blood, a person must be in good health and at least 17 years of age.  Donors must weigh at least 110 pounds.  All donors must pass the physical and health history examinations given prior to donation.  For specific questions on donor eligibility, call BCNJ's Donor Services department at 973-676-4700, ext. 132.

How else can I help?

·        Fill out a pledge form.  Go online at www.bloodnj.org.  We will call you when we need you to donate.

·        Consider being an on-call volunteer.  Call Za Za Chamberlain at 800-256-6365, ext. 151 and she'll contact you if we need you.  We may need help with the phone lines at our donor centers or headquarters, perhaps with serving refreshments at blood drives, or helping with donor registration.

·        Consider becoming an apheresis donor!  Apheresis in the process of removing a specific component of blood, such as platelets, and returning the remaining components, such as red blood cells and plasma, to the donor.  This process allows more of one particular part of the blood to be collected than could be separated from a unit of whole blood.  Unlike red blood cells, which may be transfused up to 42 days after donation, platelets must be transfused within five days.  When you give platelets, you know there is a patient with a very serious health problem waiting to receive your donation.  Apheresis donations are scheduled at BCNJ's sites in West Orange and Parsippany and at Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center in Plainfield.  For more information on the program, contact Linda Christian at 800-652-5663, x148.

Together, we stand united

The Blood Center of New Jersey
45 South Grove Street
East Orange, New Jersey  07018
1-800-NJBLOOD
1-973-676-4700

Copyright © 2001-2003 by The Blood Center of New Jersey. All rights reserved.