500th Person Donates Blood at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue To Replenish New York's Blood Supply Amidst Shortage
NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue hosts its eighth blood drive since the beginning of the pandemic
Aug 04, 2021
NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue announced today that CEO William Hicks was the 500th person to donate blood since the hospital started hosting blood drives with the New York Blood Center to address the shortage during the pandemic. Since March 2020, NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue hosted seven blood drives and a total of 471 units were collected and have helped approximately 1,315 New Yorkers.
“I’m grateful to our staff for so enthusiastically responding to what is a concerning community need. These past 18 months have opened our eyes to how very dependent we are on each other. Donating blood is certainly one tangible way we can make a difference,” said William Hicks.
“Making it to the 500th donor is a huge milestone and I applaud everyone that has supported our blood drive efforts. I’m already looking forward to our 1,000th donor and know we can do it,” said Director Clinical Ancillary Service at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue Patience Mancho. “The Bellevue staff have continued to show what it’s like to help someone in need and be a glimmer of hope for many. It has been a joy to see so many staff rising to the call to donate the gift of life. Bellevue is full of compassionate people and I’m proud to be affiliated with an organization that gives back to the community.”
“New York Blood Center is grateful for our partnership with NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue. During the pandemic, although Bellevue was in the midst of fighting to save patients affected by COVID-19, many employees rolled up their sleeves to help patients in area hospitals. We continue to partner with the blood drive and hope to continue to work together,” said New York Blood Center Account Manager Javier Jiménez, .
NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue was one on the first sites to contact the New York Blood Center to host an onsite blood drive to address the emergent need. According to New York Blood Center, the long-term impact of the pandemic has resulted in a year of virtually no first-time donors, 3,000 fewer blood drives and 100,000 New Yorkers that have yet to return to donate since before the pandemic. There’s been a surge in blood usage as hospitals perform surgeries and patients seek medical care that was postponed during the pandemic. The increased need and lag in donors have created a chronic gap in blood donations.