Great River Health is hosting a Mississippi Valley Regional Blood
Center blood drive from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, May 2, in the Mercy
Plaza lobby, 1225 S. Gear Ave., West Burlington.
The theme is “Step Up to the Plate.” Everyone who presents
to donate will receive their choice of a red or blue baseball-theme T-shirt
and a box of Cracker Jack.
Donors must be 17 years old (16 with a signed Parental Consent Form), weigh
at least 110 pounds and be in good health. Photo identification or a blood
center donor card is required to donate. Donors who last gave blood on
or before March 17 are eligible to give at this drive.
Donors may walk in or make an appointment by calling (319) 768-3303. They also can
register online. Scheduling online earns points for gear at the blood center’s Donor
Loyalty Store.
To prepare for donation, eat a snack before donating and drink plenty of
fluids before and after giving blood.
The major reasons patients need blood are cancer, heart and blood vessel
disease, gastrointestinal diseases and emergencies such as car accidents
and burns. There is no substitute for blood; it must come from donors.
Every unit of blood donated can save up to four lives.
The not-for-profit Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center provides all
the blood products used at Great River Medical Center and 86 other hospitals
in Iowa, Illinois, Missouri and Wisconsin. Based in Davenport, it tests,
processes and distributes more than 250,000 units of blood components
each year.
For more information about donating blood, please visit www.bloodcenter.org.