Blood Donation Events Highlight Need For Blood In Our Communities
Tammy Winchester is the Chicago Community Outreach Manager for Community Blood Center. The company has been hosting events to commemorate September as Sickle Cell Awareness Month. Photo provide by Sonya Lewis
The Community Blood Center has locations in Chicago, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It was founded in 1955 to supply blood to hospitals in the Midwest region. It relies on volunteer blood donors. It was extended to Chicago in 2018 to help and engage the community with blood donation.
“There is no substitute for blood. When a patient is facing Sickle Cell Anemia or Cancer treatment or surgical procedures, it is important for volunteer blood donors to help ensure that blood is readily available,” said Tammy Winchester, the Chicago Community Outreach Manager for the Community Blood Center. Blood transfusions are needed for those patients’ conditions and their therapeutic therapy. The Community Blood Center helps those patients by providing that blood from its blood drives.
African-Americans and Latinx populations have made progress over the years with donating blood more often than previously, but the need is constant for blood donation. “Coming out of the pandemic, we are trying with all our efforts to increase the participation of blood donation,” Winchester said.
The numbers for blood donation among African-Americans and Latinx are slowly creeping up. Winchester said people are realizing with blood donation there is an opportunity to help someone else and it doesn’t cost them anything. There is also an education piece with more literature out there that encourages people to donate blood in the community.
“We want to see this cycle to continue, not just a curve of going up and down, we want to see it continue,” Winchester said. “We want to see people, African-American and Latinx donate as often as they can.”
There is a constant need for blood. Every two seconds someone in the United States needs blood. People can donate blood every 56 days. The goal is to make sure people who rely on blood can have it available.
At the Blood Drives anywhere from 10 to 50 people donate. At a recent blood drive that took place Saturday, September 25th, hosted in partnership with My Block, My City, My Hood.
The Cook County Commissioner Bill Lowry will host an Inaugural Men’s Health Fair from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 30, at Apostolic Church of God Family Center, located at 6320 S. Dorchester. The Community Blood Center will be there to facilitate a Blood Drive.
To donate blood, you must weigh at least 110 lbs., and be in good general health. People aged 17 and older are eligible to give blood. Youth ages 16 can donate blood with parental consent. There is a brief screening, with around 50 questions before donating blood. The whole process can take from 30 to 45 minutes.
People who donate should stay hydrated, sleep well, and prior to donation, consume high iron food and protein such as a– hamburger or drink red wine.
For more information about the Community Blood Center, visit https://www.communityblood.org.
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