GILLETTE, Wyo. — Donation shortfalls over the Fourth of July weekend have resulted in an emergency blood shortage, prompting Vitalant, a nonprofit blood services provider, to issue a statewide call for type O blood donations.
According to Vitalant, blood donations were down 30% over the recent holiday weekend. The decrease in holiday donors combined with low donor turnout this summer has resulted in a shortage of type O blood.
The donor shortage is likely due to higher-than-normal heat and summer vacations during trauma season — when injuries from outdoor activities can increase — Vitalant says.
Vitalant services 900 hospitals around the nation, including 15 in Wyoming, and the provider is urging all donors, particularly those with type O blood, to make an appointment to give blood in the coming days and weeks.
“No doctor should have to face the impossible choice of which patient receives the blood they need and who must wait,” Dr. Ralph Vassallo, Vitalant’s chief medical and scientific officer, said in a statement. “There isn’t anything that can substitute for lifesaving blood donations from generous donors. Donors of all blood types continue to be urgently needed.”
Type O blood continues to be the most in-demand blood for patients due to its universal use in life-or-death situations, Vitalant says, adding that an estimated 40% of the population has this blood type to give and can help overcome the shortage.
According to a July 16 press release, O-negative blood can be transfused to patients of any blood type while O-positive blood can support anyone with a positive blood type.
To encourage donations and overcome the shortage, Vitalant says donors who give blood through July 27 will automatically be entered to win a new car worth $30,000. Donation appointments can be made online, through the Vitalant app or by phone, per the release.
