San Diego Blood bank calls for donations as supply runs critically low

SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Blood Bank issued a call today for more donations of all blood types as supplies have fallen to “critically low” levels with area hospitals ramping up surgeries delayed by COVID-19.

According to the bank, which operates donor centers in Escondido and Vista, summer is always a challenging time for blood centers to ensure an adequate blood supply due to schools being out of session.

This year is especially challenging as many businesses and community groups are not able to host their normal blood drives due to work-from-home policies.

“We are seeing an increased need for blood, but are limited in our ability to collect at this time,” said San Diego Blood Bank CEO David Wellis. “We are confident the community will come through as the need continues to rise. Blood donors are the guardians of community health and we are grateful.”

Safety measures are in place including required face coverings, cleaning of surfaces in between each donation, reducing the volume of people gathering at any one time, screening donors for upper respiratory symptoms and taking temperatures prior to entering donor center or mobiles.

For information related to blood donation and COVID-19 visit the center’s website here. Appointments are required so staff can control the flow of traffic and practice safety measures.

The blood bank is asking those who have never given blood and those who haven’t given blood recently to schedule an appointment to donate blood now in order to ensure supply is on hand for local patients.

To be eligible to donate blood, you must be at least 17 years old, weigh at least 114 pounds and be in general good health. Appointments are available at www.SanDiegoBloodBank.org or by calling 1-800-469-7322.