Lifesaving transfusions follow traumatic home accident

Transfusion recipient Kelli Conway from Paris, TX

The location of one of the most common causes of trauma is closer than you think.

Major trauma is any significant injury that is potentially life-threatening. That includes falls in the home, a main reason for trauma-related blood transfusions in the United States, surpassed only by traffic and roadway accidents.

Kelli Conway knows every minute counts when confronted with a rapid, uncontrollable loss of blood.

A devastating fall in December

During the year-end holiday season in 2025, Kelli accidentally fell from her home’s second-story balcony. On that cold December day in Paris, Texas, she was alone when she fell more than 12 feet to the pavement below.

“I was not immediately able to call for help,” Kelli said. “By the time I arrived at the first hospital in Paris, Texas, I had already lost approximately three units of blood.”

Kelli had life-threatening injuries, including internal hemorrhaging, organ damage and the loss of use of her left kidney, multiple fractures, and significant facial trauma that required reconstructive surgery.

She received the first of three transfusions at the Paris hospital. Due to the extreme nature of her injuries, Kelli was transported by medical helicopter to a hospital in Plano, receiving her second transfusion during the flight. A third transfusion was administered in the intensive care unit.

“Those transfusions quite literally saved my life,” Kelli said. “I believe they also saved my spleen, as I was immediately able to go into surgery after landing at the hospital in Plano.”

Her recovery also involved full radial head replacement surgery on one of her shattered elbows.

Seeing the other side of blood donation’s importance

“I’ve always understood how vital blood donation is,” Kelli said. “As an O-negative, CMV-negative donor, I’ve also had the opportunity to participate in specialized granulocytapheresis donations for patients in critical need.”

A consistent Carter BloodCare donor, currently at the lifetime donation level of four gallons with a goal of eventually reaching 10 gallons, Kelli said she has gained added appreciation and gratitude for volunteers who make the lifesaving decision to donate blood.

“Before this experience, I understood the importance of donating blood, but living through it gave me an entirely different perspective,” she said. “I know firsthand what it means to depend on the generosity of strangers in a life-or-death moment.”

*After recovering from her severe injuries and surgeries, Kelli returned to thank the air evac team that transported her by helicopter from Paris to Plano.*

The importance of blood in trauma care

You can make a positive difference for a patient in need like Kelli. Please donate this week at your nearest Carter BloodCare mobile blood drive or donor center. To thank you when you lend an arm to help others, you’ll receive a Donor Appreciation Gift.

There’s also another way you can help right now: Have you ever received a transfusion? If so, your patient experience can motivate others to donate to save more lives. Please take a few moments to Tell Us Your Story.