Winter storm puts critical chill on Texas blood supply
Carter BloodCare urges community action to help local patients who need lifesaving transfusions
The weekend’s winter storm took a toll on the blood supply.
Inclement weather forced Carter BloodCare to cancel mobile blood drives and close donor centers for four days across 59 counties in North, Central and East Texas.
Carter BloodCare reopens at 10 a.m. Wednesday, facing a critical challenge: To replace those four days’ worth of uncollected blood donations to support urgent patient needs. Health officials with the Texas-based nonprofit say the winter storm created a chilling deficit of more than 4,000 units of blood and blood components in the local supply.
Now, there is a critical need for all blood types, especially O negative, the universal blood type for treating any patient and the only type used for premature and unborn babies. Carter BloodCare will give each whole blood O negative donor a $50 e-gift card and double red O negative donors will receive a $100 e-gift card.
Donors are also needed to give platelets, which are vital for trauma patients and people with severe burns. As a donor reward, each platelet donor will receive an e-gift card based on the number of units collected: single, $25; double, $50; and triple, $75.
Each donor will receive a limited-edition Carter BloodCare 75th anniversary sweatshirt, while supplies last.
Blood donated locally with Carter BloodCare stays in the Texas community to help local patients.
Carter BloodCare notes each unit of donated whole blood can save three local lives. That is possible when the donation is separated into its three components: red blood cells, platelets and plasma.
Carter BloodCare blood donors help children fighting cancer, mothers going through difficult childbirths, organ transplant recipients, open-heart surgery patients, older adults with age-related health issues, sickle cell disease patients, people hurt in life-threatening vehicle accidents, and others with severe trauma injuries.
Residents can begin donating blood at 16 years old with parental consent; those 17 and older can donate independently. Also, eligible Carter BloodCare donors must weigh at least 110 pounds and feel well on the day of their donation.
Donors can easily schedule an appointment to give at their closest Carter BloodCare donation location by visiting CarterBloodCare.org or calling 800-366-2834.
About Carter BloodCare
Carter BloodCare is an independent community blood center providing transfusion resources to more than 225 medical facilities in 59 counties of North, Central and East Texas. The nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization is one of the largest blood programs in Texas, delivering more than 450,000 blood products annually to meet hospitals’ requirements for their patients. Services include collection, processing, specialized laboratory testing, storage and distribution of blood and blood products. Tu centro de sangre comunitario.