STATE
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, February 9, 2022
A7
‘Please donate blood. Now’
National blood shortage
felt locally in E. Oregon
demic or not,” he said. “We here at
St. Anthony have taken steps to be
prepared as best as possible.”
Even still, the hospital presi-
dent did not mince words about the
national shortage.
“Please donate blood,” he said.
“Now.”
By ALEX WITTWER
EO Media Group
EASTERN OREGON — Blood
doesn’t last long. Platelets last only
fi ve days, according to the Ameri-
can Red Cross, while red blood cells
will last up to 42 days. Plasma can
last up to one year if frozen. Nor can
blood be manufactured; the supply
of blood relies entirely on donors
rolling up their sleeves.
The American Red Cross, which
held a nationwide blood drive in
January including several blood
donation stations in Eastern Oregon,
reports it is facing a blood crisis.
The organization’s website stated
its blood supply is at the lowest lev-
els in more than a decade. The alarm
was sounded last month during
National Blood Donor month.
“While some types of medical
care can wait, others can’t,” said Dr.
Pampee Young, chief medical offi -
cer of the Red Cross. “Hospitals are
still seeing accident victims, cancer
patients, those with blood disorders,
like sickle cell disease, and indi-
viduals who are seriously ill who
all need blood transfusions to live
even as omicron cases surge across
the country. We’re doing everything
we can to increase blood dona-
tions to ensure every patient can
receive medical treatments with-
out delay. We cannot do it without
more donors. We need the help of
the American people.”
Local hospitals react
to shortage
The national blood shortage has
hit uneven ground in Eastern Ore-
gon, with area hospitals reporting
their blood supply falling below
critical levels.
Most hospitals are handling
it well, given the circumstances,
while others have begun to feel the
eff ects. Most blood that is donated
goes to local hospitals, accord-
ing to Caitlin Cozad, marking and
communications director for Good
Shepherd Health Care System,
Hermiston.
“Community support of Amer-
ican Red Cross blood drives is
essential to return our blood sup-
ply to pre-COVID minimum stock-
Changing the rules
Alex Wittwer/EO Media Group
Jake Yoste, a phlebotomy technician with the American Red Cross, explains the blood donation process to Elena Night-
ingale at the community blood drive at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in La Grande on Tuesday, Jan. 25.
ing numbers,” she said. “We espe-
cially need O-negative donors. This
is one way you can serve your com-
munity and help ensure a stable
blood supply for local hospitals.”
It is unclear to what degree the
pandemic has aff ected the amount
of blood donations. Some areas,
such as La Grande and Baker City,
have experienced an uptick in
donations this year in comparison
to other areas in the region. Still,
the American Red Cross noted that
nationwide blood donations have
gone down 10% since the begin-
ning of the pandemic.
“We have experienced criti-
cal blood supply issues in the past
months. We have had no units of
O-negative on the shelf two times
and zero O-positive one time,”
said Ronda Reisdorph, a labora-
tory manager at Hermiston’s Good
Shepherd Medical Center. “We
have been running with less than
minimum thresholds in the past few
months and no chance for restock-
ing even with emergent cases.”
While the medical center expects
to receive an increased supply over
the coming weeks to supplement its
stockpile, there’s no indication that
the national blood shortage will
improve in the near future.
The American Red Cross pro-
vides approximately 40% of the
nation’s blood supply, accord-
ing to the organization, and some
hospitals might receive as little as
25% of their requested blood ship-
ments in the coming weeks. Hospi-
tals normally keep a steady supply
of blood for routine procedures but
can request more in the event of a
mass casualty or injury event.
Since much of the blood that
arrives in hospitals comes from the
arms of local community members,
due to the large turnout for Union
County blood drives, some local
hospitals have fared better in the
national crisis.
Mardi Ford, director of commu-
nications at Grande Ronde Hospi-
tal, La Grande, credited the work
of husband-and-wife duo Linda
and Sheldon Strand, who run La
Grande’s American Red Cross
blood drives, as a key factor in
ensuring Grande Ronde Hospital
has an adequate blood supply. Ford
said the hospital works closely with
the American Red Cross and has an
internal system that is used to track
blood supply levels.
Ford said the hospital has only
had a couple of instances in the
past few years where blood sup-
plies reached critical levels.
“We are proactive in making
sure that we have what we need
to serve our patients,” she said.
“That’s one of the beauties of being
small and independent. We have
options on how we’re able to do
things.”
Wallowa Memorial Hospital,
Enterprise, recently received ship-
ments where the requested blood
supply was not provided.
“Fortunately, we work with the
Red Cross on a blood rotation to
keep us at optimal levels and have
held on to a supply of the shorted
products,” said Brooke Pace, direc-
tor of communications and public
relations. “We do this to ensure that
nothing is wasted because of out-
dating. We can still transfer units to
regional hospitals in our area if dat-
ing becomes a concern.”
Stefanie Davidson, Wallowa
Memorial Hospital’s lab direc-
tor, urged residents to donate blood
amid the growing national shortage,
even as local supplies remain steady.
“Even though we still have an
above-critical supply, the national
shortage is a concern, and we would
like to encourage anyone who can to
get out and donate,” she said.
Pendleton’s CHI St. Anthony
Hospital fared better than other hos-
pitals in the region, according to the
facility’s president, Harold Geller,
who noted the hospital was well
stocked.
“There is always a concern, pan-
The blood crisis also has renewed
an eff ort by lawmakers to change the
rules regarding donations by those in
the LGBT community.
Senators from across the nation
signed a letter on Jan. 14 urging
the Food and Drug Administration
to change the rules to allow men in
same-sex relationships to donate
blood. In total, 22 senators signed
their names to the letter, includ-
ing Democratic Oregon Sens. Ron
Wyden and Jeff Merkley.
“In light of the nation’s urgent
blood supply crisis and to ensure that
Americans have access to life-saving
blood transfusions during the pan-
demic, we urge you to swiftly update
your current blood donor defer-
ral policies in favor of ones that are
grounded in science, based on indi-
vidualized risk factors, and allow all
potentially eligible donors to do so
free of stigma,” the senators wrote
Department of Health and Human
Services Secretary Xavier Becerra
and FDA Acting Commissioner Janet
Woodcock.
In 1983, at the height of the HIV/
AIDS scares of the 1980s, the federal
government placed a lifetime ban
on gay men donating blood. Those
rules were relaxed in 2015 by requir-
ing one year of abstinence, with the
time reduced further to three months
in 2020.
The letter noted that advances
in testing technologies would allow
for gay and bisexual men to safely
donate blood, and criticized the time-
based guidelines that perpetuate
stereotypes.
“It is critical that all patients have
access to the health care services
they need during this pandemic, and
for many, the availability of blood
and blood products is a necessary
component of care,” the letter said.
“Unfortunately, a signifi cant drop in
the number of donations during the
COVID-19 pandemic has resulted
in a serious shortage of available
blood.”
American Standard
Sinks & Toilets,
Delta Faucets
Brandford White,
Water Heaters
245 N. Canyon Blvd., Canyon City
541-575-2144 • Mon.-Fri. 8am-4:30pm
February 4, 2022
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A uniquie boutique featuring local arti-
sans from Grant County
133 W. Main, John Day, OR
541-620-2638 • etc.handmade@yahoo.com
Hello Grant County,
We’d like to welcome new members Frontier Equipment and Frontier Rent-
als, Umatilla-Morrow Head Start, Inc., and Eastern Oregon Workforce
Board.
We would like to give a “shout out” to Humbolt Elementary School for sup-
porting our Greenbacks program and keeping their money local! They buy
Greenbacks for awards and incentives for their students and staff. I know
our local businesses appreciate that!
Wow! January went by fast. It will be spring before we know it!
We are excited to be hosting the 2022 Cycle Oregon Classic – “Ride the
Painted Hills” later this summer. The ride will start and end in John Day
and we could have as many as 1,500 riders and all of the support staff here
for a couple of days. The ride starts September 10 and ends September 17.
Cycle Oregon brings with them several opportunities for local organizations
and groups to earn some money by helping with various tasks while they are
here. The Chamber will be the Community Coordinator for the two days
in John Day. If you are part of an organization and would like to help out,
please get in touch with us.
Plans for the Grape and Grain event we have scheduled for Friday, May
13th are coming together! We are looking forward to a wonderful event in
the Grant County Fairgrounds Pavilion. We will let you know when tickets
are available.
www.dukewarnerrealtyofeasternoregon.com
Lori Hickerson
Sally Knowles
Babette Larson
Principal Broker, GRI
Office: 541-575-2617
Broker, GRI
Office: 541-932-4493
Broker, GRI
Office: 541-987-2363
We have ordered our new sign. It will be right out front with a reader board
that we will be able to display information for our residents and visitors. We
are looking forward to advertising local events and providing other import-
ant messages.
PIONEER FEED &
FARM SUPPLY
60561 HWY 26,
John Day, Oregon 97845
541-575-0023
If you get the chance, support our local basketball teams that will be play-
ing in the High Desert League 1A District Basketball Tournament at Grant
Union High School February 17-19. Let’s show the visiting teams and their
families some Grant County hospitality! We wish all of our Grant County
Teams good luck!
This month’s Chamber Business meeting is Thursday, February 17th at
10:30 AM at the Chamber office.
Stay well,
Tammy Bremner
Executive Director
S280942-1