Idalia, other events have caused a national blood shortage. Here’s how to donate in NJ

When the national American Red Cross experiences a blood shortage, so do its local chapters — including New Jersey.

The Red Cross announced on Monday its national supply reached critically low levels, falling nearly 25% since early August. Blood drives across the nation did not collect the amount of donations the organization expected.

Red Cross blood donations all enter the same supply and are transported from all areas to wherever it’s needed most. The shortage could potentially threaten care for patients with emergency needs or who have such conditions as cancer, since they may depend on blood transfusions to survive, according to the Red Cross website.

Nationwide, the Red Cross needs 12,500 donations to meet demand at about 2,500 hospitals and transfusion centers. The Penn-Jersey Region — including all of New Jersey, the greater Philadelphia area and parts of Delaware — needs to collect about 600 blood donations, according to American Red Cross New Jersey Region Communications Director Diane Concannon.

Idalia, other weather events have canceled blood drives

Weather events can lead to a lack of donations, Concannon said, so donation rates vary across the country. Hurricane Idalia, which caused flooding and other destruction largely in the southeast U.S. in August, forced Red Cross chapters to cancel hundreds of blood drives in Georgia and the Carolinas. These areas typically collect large numbers of donations.  

“We see it a lot in the wintertime when we’ve got those winter storms and it’s not safe to go out on the roads, so blood drives are canceled,” Concannon said. “We try to make up for it by asking people to reschedule appointments and come donate blood because it’s needed.”

Find a blood drive nearby or become a volunteer

People can check the Red Cross’ website to find blood drives nearby and schedule a donation appointment.

Building up the supply will take time, Concannon said. If people cannot donate blood themselves but want to help, they can volunteer as “blood donor ambassadors” at Red Cross blood drives. Ambassadors help register donors, guide them through the process and keep an eye on people after their donation.

Individuals or organizations can also host a Red Cross blood drive but interested parties should plan far in advance so the local organizations can accommodate the amount of staff necessary to run a drive, Concannon said. The New Jersey chapter also hopes to increase staffing in particular of phlebotomists.

To schedule a blood donation, sign up to volunteer or host a blood drive, visit redcross.org.