Stanford Blood Center Has Critical Need for O Blood Types

October 1, 2020
Attention News Desk: Press Release (for immediate release)
MEDIA CONTACT:
Ross Coyle | 650-725-3804
rcoyle@stanford.edu

STANFORD, Calif. — Bay Area residents are being asked to donate type O blood products at Stanford Blood Center (SBC) to help meet the needs of local patients.

Supply of O positive blood extremely low; All donors in October get limited-edition SBC face mask

Because of higher than normal blood usage at our partner hospitals and a ramp up of elective surgeries, SBC has a critically low inventory of O positive (O+) and the nationwide blood supply for type O blood is depleted.

“Despite the challenging times with COVID-19 having an impact on blood donations, we’ve had an increase in demand for blood products and currently only have a few days’ worth of O positive on hand,” said SBC Spokesperson Ross Coyle. “A single donation can help save the lives of up to three patients, so we’re urging the local community to please consider making an appointment to donate at one of our centers or an upcoming mobile drive as soon as possible.”

Stanford Blood Center has been supporting a number of patients who have required large amounts of blood products. “Over the past 10 days, patients at Stanford hospitals have required close to 1,200 units (pints) of red blood cells (RBCs), with more than 600 units being O+ blood,” said Dr. Tho Pham, Chief Medical Officer at Stanford Blood Center. “We’ve seen a spike in usage in just the last three days alone, with over 300 units of O+ RBCs being used, many for multiple cardiovascular surgeries.”

While we are critically low for O+ blood, all blood types are needed. Anyone who comes in to donate during the month of October will receive a limited-edition SBC #EverydayBraveface mask as a thank-you. If you’ve thought about donating before but have never done it, just know that you don’t have to be a superhero to help your community, you just have to be a little bit #EverydayBrave! It’s just about an hour of your time, and you can help patients who need life-saving blood.

To schedule an appointment at one of our donor centers or mobile drives, please visit stanfordbloodcenter.org or call 888-723-7831.

About Stanford Blood Center

Stanford Blood Center (SBC) is an independent, community blood center that supplies blood products and testing services to multiple Bay Area hospitals and is a recognized leader in the fields of transfusion and transplantation medicine. SBC was created at the Stanford University School of Medicine in 1978 to meet the complex transfusion and transplant needs of Stanford Health Care and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford, as well as provide clinical trial services and specialized blood products for researchers. Today, the center remains locally focused, serving community hospitals, patients and donors, while contributing to research and advancement that impact the world at large. More information is available at stanfordbloodcenter.org.