Blood donations needed – supplies critically low

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FORT COLLINS, Colo. (Aug. 17, 2018) – Local blood supplies are critically low, and the officials at UCHealth Garth Englund Blood Donation Centers are asking the public to consider donating blood in the next three weeks to help save lives.

A number of serious trauma incidents in recent months have depleted much of the supply at UCHealth’s Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins and Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland, according to Larisa Maristany, the supervisor at the blood donor centers.

This comes at a time when national blood banks also are experiencing critically low supplies and will only be able to help local facilities in emergencies.

Donations of all blood types are needed and important, Maristany said. However, the center especially needs donors with O negative and A negative because those types are typically harder to find.

Donations can be scheduled at either of Garth Englund’s blood donor centers in northern Colorado – 1025 Pennock Place in Fort Collins or at Medical Center of the Rockies, 2500 Rocky Mountain Ave., in Loveland. Officials expect the need will be ongoing for the several weeks. Interested donors should call 970.680.8053 to schedule an appointment to donate sometime this month at either of these locations.

To donate, a person must be at least 18 years old (or 17 with a parent’s permission) and show a photo identification. New donors must weigh at least 120 pounds and be in good health. Prior donors must weigh at least 110 pounds. Donors also should eat a good meal before their appointment and drink plenty of water the day before and day of the drive. Whole blood donations take 30-40 minutes. Platelet donations take anywhere from 90-120 minutes. More information about eligibility requirements, the donation process and donation center hours is posted at http://bit.ly/uchealthblood.

All blood donated through UCHealth’s Garth Englund Blood Donation Centers stays local. It helps patients at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland, Greeley Emergency and Surgery Center, Longs Peak Hospital in Longmont and Estes Park Health.

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