Community Blood Drive at College of the Desert
Students and community members are urged to roll up their sleeves for a blood drive taking place at the Palm Desert campus on Monday, October 3.
Across Riverside County and nationally, blood banks and hospitals are facing unprecedented blood shortages due to impacts from the pandemic and traditional declines that occur during spring and summer breaks.
“College of the Desert is honored to be part of a solution to this crisis in our region’s blood supply and we hope everyone who can do so will come down and be part of this effort,” said Dr. Christina Tafoya, Interim Executive Vice President.
LifeStream Blood Bank will be at the Cravens Student Services Center, Room #269, 43-500 Monterey Ave., Palm Desert, between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Appointments are encouraged and can be scheduled at the student center or online at: lstream.org/cityofpalmdesert.
LifeStream serves more than 80 hospitals across Southern California. Over the summer, the organization’s supply of blood products shrank to less than a day’s worth.
The need for lifesaving blood never takes a break.
Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood for surgeries, cancer treatments, childbirth, anemia, serious injuries and blood disorders, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which has been sounding the alarm over the nation’s dwindling supply. Just one donation can save up to three lives.
“A consistent supply of blood and plasma is critical to the health of our nation,” HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Rachel L. Levine, M.D. said in August “We simply need more people to give and to give regularly. We also need donors from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds.”
Officials at College of the Desert, which offers robust healthcare and nursing education programs, hope the event will inspire new donors to become regular contributors to the blood supply. All blood types are needed.
Donors will receive $5 gift cards to In-and-Out Burger, and free T-shirts while supplies last. For more information, visit lstream.org/cityofpalmdesert.
