HSU Students to Give Blood to Help Save Lives

January 24, 2014 JANLYN THAXTON
 

“Just three teaspoons of blood can save a newborn’s life,” says Frances Baker with the Meek Blood Center in Abilene. January is National Blood Donors Month and Hardin-Simmons University students, as well as faculty and staff, will be donating blood next Tuesday.

The Meek Bloodmobiles will be in front of HSU’s Behrens Auditorium, Tuesday, January 28, 2014, from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Baker says last January, Hardin-Simmons University students had an excellent record of giving during the campus blood drive. “It is a wonderful example to our community to see students, many who come to Abilene from other communities, taking the time and the initiative to donate blood.”

Baker puts the need for blood into perspective, saying, “When testing is needed on pre-mature babies, transfusions can be needed just to replace the blood that was taken. Adults have 8 to 12 pints of blood, but a small baby has only about a cup.”

According to the Meek website, an accident or trauma victim may require as many as 30 pints of blood upon arrival to the hospital; a patient undergoing open-heart surgery may require four to six pints of blood; and on any given day, 40,000 units of red blood cells are needed in the United States.

Additionally, the blood bank stresses that only 5% of the population in the U.S. eligible to give blood actually donates.

Sue Ann Biggs, HSU nurse, says a social media campaign to HSU students will be used to advertise the Bloodmobiles on campus. The Meek Blood Center is throwing in an extra bonus for the students, a T-shirt that says “I bleed purple and gold to save lives,” will be given to each donor.

The Meek Bloodmobiles will be in front of HSU’s Behrens Auditorium, Tuesday, January 28, 2014, from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

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