Saturday, August 21, 1999

Companies display blood-drive determination

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BY TIM BONFIELD
The Cincinnati Enquirer

        While many local companies that sponsored blood drives fell short of their collection goals, several others surpassed them. Here's how three Tristate employers with long track records of successful drives get workers to roll up their sleeves.

        • Ethicon Endosurgery, Blue Ash:

        The maker of medical devices runs four blood drives a year, collecting 250 to 300 units per drive. That adds up to nearly one unit for each of its 1,200 employees — the highest participation rate of any Tristate employer and the second highest total number of units collected (behind the much larger Procter & Gamble).

        “First off, we're a Johnson & Johnson company and they're a big supporter of blood drives nationally. It's one of the three big initiatives the company supports,” said Terry Elliott, a safety manager who has organized the company blood drives for nine years.

        Early on, Ethicon's president set the tone by holding a board meeting on blood drive day, then herding all those who attended down to give blood, Mr. Elliott said.

        Now, Ethicon uses a combination of perquisites and personal recruiting to encourage donation. An eight-member committee goes around inviting donors. The company also sends frequent e-mails, phone mails and offers a hotline for donor scheduling.

        “It's not enough to put a sign up on the bulletin board saying "Blood drive on Monday,'” Mr. Elliott said. “That makes it too easy to say no.”

        Ethicon also offers several inducements, including a company jacket for those who give during at least three of the four annual drives. This year, 210 people will get the jackets, Mr. Elliott said.

        • Citibank Kentucky:

Citibank employs about 750 people in Northern Kentucky. The company sponsors three blood drives a year, collecting about 120 units per drive. That adds up to one unit of blood for every two employees.

        The strong participation stems di rectly from the efforts of an internal committee formed by John Boone, vice president and operations manager. Mr. Boone has been running blood drives for the past seven years.

        “We make sure everybody has multiple opportunities to make an appointment,” Mr. Boone said.

        The blood drive dates are publicized on an internal daily “radio show” dubbed the Laugh Line. The drives are scheduled to occur about the same time every year, so employees know they're coming.

        A week before the drive, the committee staffs a sign-up booth outside the employee cafeteria. Then on blood drive day, committee members go looking for people who signed up but didn't show.

        Anybody who shows up to donate — even if they can't actually give blood that day — gets entered in prize drawings for company T-shirts, restaurant coupons and parking passes.

        • Cincinnati Financial Corp.: Personal invitations, plus a variety of prizes, get the blood donations flowing at Fairfield-based Cincinnati Financial.

        Cincinnati Financial has about 2,000 employees. Every year, about 600 sign up to give at drives held in January and July. A big part of the success comes from a team of “recruiters” who invite co-workers to donate.

        “There aren't a lot of people who like having their arms stuck,” said Sharon Vetter, a nurse who coordinates the blood drives. “Just to be personally asked means a lot.”

        Company-wide e-mails go out in as reminders.

        Donors get to wear jeans on blood drive days, a popular perk for a company with a fairly strict dress code. Departments with the highest percentage of workers giving blood get to choose any restaurant in town to cater lunch. For most drives, donors also get company T-shirts or sweat shirts.

        Another incentive: former chief executive Robert Morgan served last year as chairman of Hoxworth's business campaign.

       

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