DOVER, Del. - January is National Blood Donor month and the Blood Bank is raising awareness with a conference.
Following the holidays, it is common for the blood bank to experience blood supply shortages. Tony Prado with the Blood Bank says they are wiped out after the holidays closed some of their busiest days of the week and currently have a 2 to 3 day supply of blood, when they would like to have a 5 to 7 day supply.
"We're very proud to say that the entire state of Delaware is covered by this state of the art program, but it doesn't work on us," said Prado. "People come and see us, and National Blood Donor Month is all about reminding people it's winter. We get it. We know you want to hibernate and not leave the house in this cold weather, but if you can make some time for us, we'd love to have you."
The conference is set for Wednesday, Jan. 7. The program includes speakers from the blood center, elected officials and donors, and healthcare officials. State representative Lyndon Yearick, Vice President of the Blood Bank of Delmarva, Kristin Frederick, and Captain Jeff Whitmarsh with the Delaware State Police Aviation Unit.
"You're talking about a product that can only come from the human body. It cannot be manufactured in the lab synthetically. I don't think we ever will be able to do that. And I can tell you confidently they're not even close. So it comes from people giving their time, giving their blood," said Prado.
The event begins at 11 a.m. at the Blood Bank of Delmarva in Dover, located at 221 S Saulsbury Rd, Dover, DE 19904.