People give blood during a blood drive of the German Red Cross DRK because the blood reserves of the hospitals are running out in the stadium in Erfurt, central Germany, Wednesday, March 18, 2020. The fear of the coronavirus also has an effect on the willingness to donate blood in many German states. According to the DRK, the number of blood donors has decreased over the past few days during the corona crises. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. (AP Photo/Jens Meyer)
Russ Walker joined PA Post in 2019 as executive editor. He previously worked at KING 5 News, the NBC-affiliated TV station serving Seattle and Western Washington. At KING, Russ oversaw the award-winning investigative unit and managed the newsroom’s daily operations. His background includes stints as an editor for POLITICO, washingtonpost.com, FreedomChannel.com, American Health Line and U.N. Wire. He is a graduate of Vanderbilt University. Russ and his wife, journalist and cookbook author Kim O’Donnel, live in Lancaster.
People give blood during a blood drive of the German Red Cross DRK because the blood reserves of the hospitals are running out in the stadium in Erfurt, central Germany, Wednesday, March 18, 2020. The fear of the coronavirus also has an effect on the willingness to donate blood in many German states. According to the DRK, the number of blood donors has decreased over the past few days during the corona crises. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. (AP Photo/Jens Meyer)
How are you holding up? I’m a little overwhelmed, to be honest, not knowing how long our daily lives will be disrupted by coronavirus. To try to stay sane, my wife and I are getting a daily walk in, and we’re taking advantage of Hollywood’s decision to release some new films direct-to-streaming, and, of course, we’re cooking! Tell us how you’re doing, and what’s keeping you sane in these days of uncertainty. Our Listening Post is open. We’ll share some of your stories in a future newsletter. —Russ Walker, PA Post editor
People give blood during a blood drive of the German Red Cross DRK because the blood reserves of the hospitals are running out in the stadium in Erfurt, central Germany, Wednesday, March 18, 2020. The fear of the coronavirus also has an effect on the willingness to donate blood in many German states. According to the DRK, the number of blood donors has decreased over the past few days during the corona crises. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. (AP Photo/Jens Meyer)
The American Red Cross is desperate. Coronavirus has stopped blood donors from showing up, and blood drives are hard to do when workplaces are shuttered and hospitals are under strict lockdowns.
LNP spoke with Red Cross spokesperson Alana Mauger, who “confirmed that virus-related hesitancy has led to a shortage in blood supplies. Since the outbreak first made its way to the United States early this year, about 4,500 blood drives had been canceled across the country, Mauger said, sharing Thursday totals. Those cancellations resulted in the loss of about 150,000 individual donations, she said.”
Blood drives like the ones often set up at workplaces or community centers produce 80 percent of the donations obtained by the Red Cross, according to Alana Mauger, communications manager for Red Cross Blood Services for the Penn Jersey region. “I don’t think we’re ever going to get to a point where we can make up for all that 80%,” Mauger told The Philadelphia Inquirer, “but we’re certainly trying to chip away at it.”
But blood drives are still being scheduled, with modifications made to minimize risk of coronavirus exposure. Can you help?
In Pittsburgh, donors can schedule through Vitalant at 877-25-VITAL (877-258-4825) or visit Vitalant.org.
Nonprofits need your help
Cafeteria worker Cathy Piluso hands out free meals at Bensalem High School in Bensalem, Pa., Thursday, March 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
It’s not just the Red Cross and blood banks that need your help. Plenty of volunteer organizations delivering essential services are struggling to keep their operations afloat. Some examples:
“Researchers have posted to the open-access site MedRxiv their own recent studies that used data from the outbreak that suggest people can be infectious sometimes days before they show symptoms of Covid-19. Some reports suggest some carriers never experience any. …
“Symptoms in many Covid-19 cases are mild, so people carry on their normal activities, shedding virus as they go, experts said. That’s a big problem because they can infect people who are likely to end up in the hospital, they said. The proportion of people needing intense medical care is low, but because the virus is new and humans don’t have any significant natural immunity to it, even that small proportion translates into big numbers that are overwhelming the health-care system.”
