BY TIM BONFIELD
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The good news: Tristate corporations are responding to a plea for bigger, stronger blood drives. The bad news: demand for blood is rising even faster.
After blood shortages forced the Hoxworth Blood Center to make two emergency pleas for blood in six months, Tristate business leaders in July challenged employers to double their turnout for blood drives.
Despite progress in the past five months, Greater Cincinnati's blood bank still has to import blood from other cities to meet local patient needs.
"Even though we've increased, we still need more help," said Vikki Williamson, Hoxworth deputy director.
- Business collections increased 13.8 percent from Jan. 1 through Nov. 20 compared to the same period last year. In addition to stronger drives from traditional supporters, 77 companies held their first blood drives this year.
- Overall blood collections increased 8.1 percent for the same periods, with corporate donations responsible for most of the gain.
- However, demand for red blood cells went up 15 percent and demand for platelets went up 30 percent compared to last year.
To meet local demand, Hoxworth spends more than $300,000 a year buying blood from other cities. Depending on imported blood leaves the area exposed in two ways.
Short-term, Cincinnati suffers when natural disasters elsewhere in the country interfere with blood donation or create spikes in demand. Long-term, Hoxworth faces more trouble buying blood because donation rates are dwindling nationwide.
Corporate donations are crucial to Hoxworth - they account for 47.6 percent of all blood donated in the area.
High schools provide 19.9 percent; religious groups 11.2 percent; the rest comes from community drives, colleges, hospitals and other sources.
Hoxworth is working with a local marketing agency on ways to improve its donor awareness campaigns, said spokeswoman Marsha Terry.
Companies that want to sponsor a drive can call Hoxworth's recruitment and development department at 558-1280.
