Southern Utah Red Cross Facing “Severe Blood Shortage”

ST. GEORGE — The American Red Cross is asking for blood donations, saying the country is facing a “severe blood shortage.”

According to the Red Cross, there is currently a large backlog of organ transplants and elective surgeries that were put on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic. That combined with a recent uptick in trauma cases and emergency room visits means the supply of usable blood is running low.

“We only have about half a day’s supply of blood,” said Michael Wiest, Account Manager for the Southern Utah branch of the Red Cross. “Meaning if everybody stopped donating right now, we would run out of O-type blood within about 10 hours.”

While that is unlikely to happen, said Wiest, the danger is real. A serious natural disaster or other unexpected crisis could mean a serious threat to the blood supply. Transplants and other surgeries could get delayed even further.

“Blood doesn’t have a very good shelf life. It only lasts a couple months in the fridge,” said Wiest. “The need is constant.”

A healthy person can donate blood every eight weeks, and there are several blood drives held each week around Southern Utah. Times and locations as well as health forms can be found at www.redcrossblood.org.

Red Cross phlebotomist Daniel Perez says the donating process is quick and easy. “We’ll get them checked in. We’ll do a little physical exam on them. Answer a little questionnaire.”

Then it’s time for the blood drawing. “It’s more like a little pinch,” said Perez. “That only takes about 5-10 minutes.” The whole experience from check-in to leaving takes between 45-60 minutes. And of course, there are snacks afterward.

We have not run out of blood yet, and that is largely thanks to the many regular donors who come give blood as often as they can.

One of those donors is Leslie Prodonovich, a St. George resident who used to work as a nurse in a small hospital near Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado. She said she donates because she knows how important it is to have a ready supply of blood.

“At times there were traumas, and there wasn’t enough blood in the area where we were,” said Prodonovich. If they ran out, they would need to wait for blood to be flown in from Denver. “It was nice to know that there was another source nearby.”

“If you can donate,” said Prodonovich, “you don’t know who you’re helping but you might be helping more than one person.”

Another lifelong donor is Mary Avelar, who moved to St. George last fall. She says she donates because someone else’s donation saved her life once.

“20 years ago in 2001, I had an emergency C-Section,” said Avelar. “I lost a lot of blood and ended up in the hospital a week later. They transfused me with six pints of blood and saved my life.”

While the donated blood is moved all around the country, sometimes it does directly help your neighbors here in St. George. Michael Wiest said that by using the donor app “you can actually see within about ten days where your blood went,” the exact hospital and city.

After a donation last year, he noticed that one unit of the blood he had donated went straight to St. George Regional Hospital. “That was really cool,” said Weist. “We really are helping our neighbors here in Southern Utah.”

The Red Cross is currently offering any donors who give blood between July 7-31 a $10 Amazon gift card (by email), as well as being automatically entered for a chance to win gas for a year.

For information on donations, locations, and drive times, go to the website www.redcrossblood.org.