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Adventist offers prizes for National Blood Donor Month
Updated: February 11, 2013 6:12AM
HINSDALE — As a part of National Blood Donor Month this January, Adventist Lab Partners Blood Center will hold a drawing to give away a Samsung Galaxy Tablet.
Second prize in the drawing is a gift certificate for dinner, while third prize is a $50 gas card, Regional Donor Recruiter JoEllyn Bross said.
While appointments are suggested for anyone interested in donating at the Adventist Lab Partners Blood Center, walk-ins are welcome, Bross said.
In order to donate blood or platelets, people must be at least 17 years old (16 with parent or guardian written permission); must weigh at least 110 pounds; should eat a well-balanced meal within four hours of donating; should be in general good health; and have a photo ID at the time of donation.
“Sixty percent of the population can donate blood, but only 5 percent do,” Bross said. “That breaks my heart. If one more percent of the population would donate, blood shortages would completely go away.”
Those interested in donating can call the the Adventist Lab Partners Blood Center at (630) 856-7840. They are located at 121 N. Elm St. in Hinsdale and are open from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday.
Adventist Lab Partners Blood Center supplies blood for Adventist Bolingbrook, GlenOaks, Hinsdale and La Grange Memorial hospitals. Using more than 12,000 pints of blood each year, the hospitals must purchase blood from larger organizations if the Hinsdale center is unable to collect enough.
Donations at the center are up this year, Bross said. Her goal in 2012 was to have 2,000 donors, and though she expects to fall just shy, Bross said the center has seen an increase from 2011, when there were 1,546 donors.
Still, this provides only 50 percent of what is used at Adventist Hinsdale Hospital. The ultimate goal is to provide the blood products needed for all of the Adventist Midwest Health hospitals.
In addition to holding drives at the Adventist hospitals, Adventist Lab Partners Blood Center will come out to businesses who want to host a blood drive. Anyone interested should call Bross at (630) 856-7840.
