Blood drive surpasses goals

On the anniversary of Sept. 11, 44 members of the Bloomington community became heroes. Each of the 44 heroes saved the lives of three people, and they were saved because these members of the community went to College Mall and gave blood.\n"It's just amazing, the donors are not getting anything in return except the knowledge that they are saving lives," said Mike Elsner, the donor recruitment representative for the River Valley region of the Red Cross, who was in charge of the College Mall Blood Drive. "Our expectations were met and exceeded."\nThe goal for the Sept. 11 drive was 35 pints of blood and after receiving 44 pints, they were forced to send the overflow of donors to their main office on 7th and Grant streets.\nWhile the drive was a success, the Red Cross is still in desperate need of blood. \n"This summer has been an extremely difficult one, and we are desperately trying to replenish our supply," said Stephanie French, a representative for the Red Cross in Louisville.\nShe said they are currently working with a half-a-day supply and are in need of even the most common types of blood, including A, B and O positive. \nEvery two seconds a patient needs blood. If blood is in short supply, first elective surgeries, like knee surgeries, will be cancelled. The blood is saved for critical patients, such as automobile accident \nvictims and cancer patients. The Red Cross must collect 475 units a day to be able to supply the hospitals with what they need. If the numbers fall short, lives are put in danger.\n"In the old days, they got nervous if it dropped below a three-to five-day supply, now most blood banks would love that buffer," said Dr. Tim Hannon, medical director of St. Vincent Hospital's blood conservation program.\nGiving blood is a safe and easy process. The only requirements are that the donor is 17 years of age, in good physical health and weighs at least 110 pounds.\nThe Red Cross donation center is open daily for donations but Elsner said they rely heavily on blood drives at the IU campus. A student representative from an organization can contact the Red Cross to set up a drive, and the organization must then provide 10 to 15 volunteers to work. These volunteers will be in charge of registering the donors and working the canteen, where donors are provided with food and drink after they have given blood. The Red Cross supplies the medical technicians and the equipment. \n"I'd be more than happy to work with any organization on campus to set up a blood drive," Elsner said. "We are also willing to give educational presentations on just how important giving blood is."\nElsner said the most common reason students are not able to give blood is that they have studied overseas. He said no one can give blood if he or has she has been in England for three months or Europe for six months since 1980 because of an outbreak of Mad Cow disease.\nThe Red Cross is unsure of how the disease will affect the blood and so they are taking every precaution to be safe.\nIn a very small amount of time, anyone can become a hero. With one pint of blood given, a person needing an organ transplant will be able to have his surgery, a little girl with a rare immune deficiency will be able to return to school and a newborn baby will be able to fight severe infection.\nThe Red Cross banner, hanging on the wall in the donation center puts it simply, "Somewhere, somebody needs your help. Support your local Red Cross."\nAny organization willing to host a blood drive can contact Mike Elsner at (502)540-7040 or by e-mail at elsnerm@usa.redcross.org