Blood Banks Think Positive About Getting O Negative Donors

By K.C. HOWARD

REVIEW-JOURNAL

It’s an especially bad time to get into a car accident.

United Blood Services, the sole Nevada hospital provider of blood, on Friday announced an emergency shortage of Type O negative, known as the universal blood type.

The nonprofit organization has only three pints of O negative left, said spokesman Dan Perlstein, noting a victim of a serious car accident can require 50 to 60 pints to survive.

United Blood Services, which typically relies on out-of-state blood banks during shortages, has been unable to find any replacements during a current national shortage.

It has stocked hospital shelves, but its ability to continue to provide the 23 area hospitals with O negative will be impaired if it doesn’t find new donors quickly, officials said.

O negative, which is a safe replacement for any blood-type, is often used when emergency doctors do not have enough time to check the patient’s blood type.

As supplies of O negative draw down, however, O positive and then A positive are typically next to go. They are the second and third most popular blood types, respectively.

“If it’s red we really need it. Bottom line, the other types always follow suit,” he said.

Las Vegas, where only 2 percent of the population donates compared to the national average of 5 percent, has relied on Reno to provide blood.

But this time, officials have called blood banks from Louisiana to the state of Washington and found no O negative available.

Last year, a similar shortage occurred, and Perlstein said it can take seven days to two weeks to recover a normal supply with the highest level of support from the community.

“We don’t feel we’re in any critical need at the moment, but we are being very careful using our O negative. And hopefully, people will go out and donate,” said Stacy Lee-Harrington, a spokeswoman for Summerlin Hospital Medical Center.

In times of severe shortages, hospitals can opt to reschedule nonemergency surgeries. But area hospitals contacted Friday said they did not expect that to occur and have adequate supplies at present.

Approximately 6 percent of the population has O negative blood.

“The city of Las Vegas holds our blood supply’s future in their hands,” Perlstein said.

HOW TO DONATE BLOOD

The five blood services centers in Southern Nevada will be open today. Two will remain open on Sunday. Call 349-2573 for directions and an appointment, though walk-ins are welcome.

Donors must weigh 110 pounds and be at least 17 years old. Bring proper identification such as a photo ID card and allow 60 to 90 minutes for the entire process.