When she suffered unexpected complications after the birth of her first baby, Kristen Odom needed blood. Lots of it.
CHARLESTON, SC – The Blood Connection, your community non-profit blood center, is excited to announce its new partnership with The Citadel Athletics. The military college in downtown Charleston will officially welcome The Blood Connection (TBC) to campus when their partnership kicks off on September 22nd with a blood drive for the Corps of Cadets and Charleston community.
“The Citadel Athletics is proud to partner with The Blood Connection. We look forward to helping increase the local footprint of The Blood Connection and to bring more awareness towards the cause,” says Kevin Olivett, Associate Athletic Director for External Operations at The Citadel.
TBC is the primary blood provider for Lowcountry hospitals including Roper St. Francis hospitals, Trident Health hospitals and is a supplemental provider for MUSC Hospitals. The blood supply has been critically low since before the summer because of historically low blood donor turnout, as well as an increase in traumas and natural disasters.
“During this third wave of COVID, we have seen a marked decrease in blood donation while maintaining a significant need for blood products. In any community, blood donation is a critical part of the overall process of caring for patient. Please consider donating blood so we can continue providing the best in healthcare to our patients,” said J. Rick McEvoy, MD, MBA, Chairman of Pathology at Roper St. Francis Healthcare and Medical Director at Roper Hospital Laboratories.
“The Blood Connection – which was started and is based in South Carolina – is honored to work with The Citadel – a treasured landmark of Charleston and South Carolina – to host blood drives on campus. Because TBC is the blood provider for Lowcountry hospitals, this partnership will positively impact the Charleston community directly. We are excited for the many blood drives ahead that will help save hundreds of lives,” said Delisa English, President & CEO of The Blood Connection.
The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and now the rising Delta variant is gaining help from organizations across the nation. Now, The Blood Connection in North Carolina is working to help relieve hospitals of some of their stress.
THE CAROLINAS & GEORGIA – The Blood Connection (TBC), a local non-profit, community blood center, is offering COVID-19 antibody screening to all blood donors starting Wednesday, August 18. The antibody screening will test each donor’s blood to see if it contains antibodies from the COVID-19 vaccine and/or antibodies from exposure to the COVID-19 virus. TBC will be offering this testing for all donations for a limited time.
Donors with a positive antibody test result may be eligible to donate convalescent plasma. As local hospitals continue to see a surge in COVID-19 cases due to the Delta variant, the demand for convalescent plasma (CCP) has increased. Antibody testing is one way to determine which donors may be eligible to give CCP. To learn more about donating convalescent plasma, please visit thebloodconnection.org/ccp.
The blood product, known as convalescent plasma, has antibodies that can help those critically ill with COVID-19. Research has shown that convalescent plasma has drastically helped many COVID-19 patients battling the virus by lessening the severity and potentially shortening the length of the illness.
TBC relies on community blood donors to provide for its local hospitals. As this community’s blood center, it is essential to maintain an adequate inventory of all blood products, at all times. Donors can make an appointment at a local TBC donation center or find a mobile drive nearby at thebloodconnection.org/donate. TBC encourages businesses and organizations to host a blood drive. To learn how you can help, please visit thebloodconnection.org/host-a-drive.
The Blood Connection holds an emergency press conference with its local hospital partners, UNC Rex Healthcare, and WakeMed Health, to explain the current state of blood supply.
Blood supplies have been running historically-low for historically-high periods of time in the Upstate, putting a strain on local hospitals’ ability to meet patient needs, Upstate health officials said on Thursday, July 8.