Blood Drive in McIntosh: January 21st

Find the hero in you and donate blood at the McIntosh blood drive on Thursday, January 21, 2016. The blood drive is sponsored by the VFW Auxiliary #6891, an annual event and is held at the McIntosh Community Center from 11:00 am to 5:30 pm.

There will be appointments available to fit your schedule. Volunteers will be calling for appointments, or you can contact Mary Goodwin to schedule an appointment to donate by emailing her at lmgoodwin@gvtel.com or calling at 563-3827. You can also schedule an appointment by contacting United Blood Services at 701-799-5742 or sign up online at www.bloodhero.com. Walk-ins are welcome, but to help the volunteers and medical staff, an appointment is appreciated, if at all possible.

Doughnuts, coffee, water and juice will be available to all donors.

United Blood Services currently provides blood and blood products to 108 hospitals in the area. To meet the needs of local patients which include preemies, surgery patients, accident victims, trauma situations, cancer patients and more, 550 blood donors are needed every day. 90% of us will need blood or know of someone close to you at some point in our lives but only 5% of the population donates blood. 

The shelf life of blood is only 45 days so donating often, 3 to 6 times a year is appreciated.

Please consider rolling up your sleeve to help someone in need. With a 10 minute blood draw, each donor can help save up to 3 patients lives. There is a constant need for blood donors and certain blood types are high priority to local hospitals. At this time those blood types include O-, A- and B-. O+, B+ and A+ are also needed regularly. We encourage 1st time donors to stop by as well! (There is no need to know your blood type.) 

For the most part, donors must be at least 16 years od and weigh at least 110 pounds. Anyone under the age of 18 will need parent or guardian permission before being able to donate. If you meet this criteria, please consider donating.

Most medications are now ok! Those that have battled cancer in the past, have had surgery or have high blood pressure or diabetes, are not automatically disqualified. Please call 1-800-917-4929 with eligibility questions. 

To help speed up the process, there is an option to complete your Health History the “day of” your blood donation by going to www.unitedbloodservices.org and clicking on Health History. It can be completed on a computer (with barcode printed upon completion and brought with to appointment) or on a smart phone (with screen shot of barcode captured for interview). 

If the date of the McIntosh blood drive doesn’t work for your schedule, United Blood Services has several other opportunities in the area. You are welcome to visit their website at www.unitedbloodservices.org and search by zip code to see the nearest blood drive.