It is an annual trend for blood donation numbers to decrease in the summertime, and that is why Mississippi Blood Services need your help.
“It’s a trend that we see every year,” Mississippi Blood Services Marketing and Communications Director Emily Austin said. “We see that decrease, because believe it or not, a large portion of our donations come from high schools.”
The months of June, July, and August bring diminishing numbers along with them, but summertime is not the only ongoing issue that the organization is facing as only 4% of the population donates blood.
While speaking of how that statistic does not successfully correlate with the 250-300 units of blood demanded each day, Austin also stressed the significance of having available blood ready.
“What a lot of people don’t understand is that the blood that is donated today is not going to go to the hospital for about two days, because it takes 24-48 hours for us to process,” Austin continued. “It is really important that we have blood on the shelves before any crisis or tragedy hits.”
Mississippi Blood Services is in need of all types of blood, but especially O- and platelets. There are three fixed locations in Flowood, Greenville, and Oxford for people to go and give back to the community. For more information, visit the organization’s website at msblood.com or download their free, mobile app.
“We really need any and all people to come see us,” Austin said.
