Honor our Military and donate blood. Drive begins at the Veterans Memorial Association on May 28th at 12:30PM until 3:30PM and continues all week at Lane Blood Center.

Honor our Miltary Blood Drive continues at Lane Blood Center from May 28th to June 2nd

Nurse Appreciation Week 

“You have to go in the mindset that you really want to care for people… when you become a nurse, that has to come with you” – John, RN

Between the front desk, the donation chairs, the frosted cookies and even the blog posts, Lane Blood Center would cease to be without the continued dedication, professionalism and straightforward awesomeness of our nurses and collection staff. (more…)

Passing on the Gift of Life

If you do the math it’s an amazing show of dedication. 139 donations to the Red Cross, 67 to Lane Blood Center. John Bredesen Sr. joined Lane Blood at Lane Community College to donate his 209th pint of blood.

John Bredesen Sr. and his 209th donation

To put this into perspective that’s nearly half of a 55 gallon drum of oil. Or more than 25 gallons of milk.

“He talks about how many people you can save with one donations, which is like three people. It’s the human aspect of it.”

- Kelsey Bredesen

And John Sr. didn’t stop there. What started at the age of 18 became a passion passed down through three generations of the Bredesen family. John Sr. was joined on this drive by his son John Jr. and his granddaughter Kelsey. It would be Kelsey’s first donation, the first of many she says.

We want to thank the Bredesen family and hope to hear more stories of amazing dedication, hope and passion for helping others.

Thanks John Sr., John Jr. and Kelsey! You guys rock.

Here’s video of the interview

Passing on the Gift of Life

   Behind the Scenes at LBC

This week is National Laboratory Professionals Week and we’d like to thank the Lane Blood Center Component Technicians for all that they do to keep our operations running smoothly.  Behind the scenes they play a vital role by preparing each unit of blood for delivery to our hospitals.

“There’s more to it than just taking the blood to the hospital–there’s a process” says Amber Baird (LBC Component Technician).  Each unit of blood is made into multiple products taking about half an hour per unit to process.  Our laboratory staff is also responsible for the quality control and labeling of our blood.

Without the diligent attention to detail of this crew our blood center would not be able to pass yearly inspections by agencies such as America’s Blood Centers, AABB (formerly American Association of Blood Banks) and The Food and Drug Administration (FDA).  Without these accreditations Lane Blood Center would be forced to halt operations.

Our laboratory staff is proud to be a part of the LBC team and we’re proud of the important work that they do.  “I still am amazed by it.  You take something from one body and give it to another” says Terri Madsen (LBC Component Technician).  We agree Terri; saving lives is amazing work that couldn’t be done without each of you.  Thank you for processing our donors’ extraordinary gifts of blood.  (Pictured at right-Khadija Hasan, Terri Madsen, Amber Baird and Vanessa Cook)

 

   Thank You Volunteers! 

It is National Volunteer Week and therefore a wonderful time to remind our donors, blood drive coordinators, volunteers and supporters how much we appreciate them.  LBC wouldn’t be able to support our area hospitals without the extraordinaory contributions of all of you.

National Volunteer Week was established in 1974 as a way to inspire and encourage people to seek out ways to get involved in their communities.  It is also a time to recognize those who already give back.

Yesterday we were able to recognize one of our valued volunteers through our Coordinator of the Quarter Program.  Starla Ambrose was honored for her contributions to Lane Blood Center and our community through her work as the blood drive coordinator for the Thurston Community Blood Drive at Umpqua Bank. 

Starla has been organizing the blood drives at her Umpqua Bank branch for about 4 years and in that time has managed to turn a once small, business blood drive into a thriving community blood drive.  She does a fantastic job motivating employees and community members to donate blood and keeps them coming back with lots of snacks and welcoming smiles.  Thanks Starla for all you do!

For more information about National Volunteer Week click here.

Going Green and Giving Red

All Registering blood donors from April 16-21 will receive a free seed packet of sunflowers or zinnias while supplies last.

For more information about Earth Day click here.

1 Donation=3 Lives

If you’ve ever donated blood, you’ve probably heard that your donation could help save three lives.  Has anyone ever explained how that is true?  Your one whole blood donation could save three lives because it is broken into its seperate components: red cells, platelets and plasma.  Each of these components could be used to help a different person.

What does each of these components do?  Red blood carry oxygen and iron throughout the body.  Platelets help the body form scabs to stop bleeding.  Plasma makes up the majority of blood volume and transports the other blood cells, maintaining blood pressure and aiding in clotting.

Red blood cells are often used to treat anemia and blood loss from surgery and/or trauma.  Platelets are needed for many cancer patients, in leukemia treatment and often used during transplant surgeries.  Since plasma maintains blood pressure and assists in clotting, it is essential in many medical procedures and emergency situations.  Each component plays a crucial role and is needed to save lives every day.

Your blood donation will be seperated and each of these components will be processed to ensure that a maximum number of patients benefit from your generosity.  What an extraordinary gift–1 donation= 3 lives!

Make an appointment to save 3 lives at www.laneblood.org today.

 Donate Life!

April is National Donate Life Month.  All across the nation people are encouraged to become organ and tissue donors.  While there are some organs and tissues that can be donated while you are still alive much of this donation takes place post mortem.

Please register to become an organ donor by clicking this graphic.

Did you know that without blood donations most organ donations would be rendered useless?  The major surgery required to transplant most organs almost always results in a need for blood products.  For example, a typical liver transplant can use up to 10 units of red cells, 20 units of plasma and 10 units of platelets-that’s up to 40 blood donations for one patient!

Lane Blood Center encourages you to donate life this April by registering to become an organ donor here or by donating blood at any Lane Blood Center blood drive.  Schedule your life-saving blood donation by clicking the “Make Your Appointment TODAY!” button at laneblood.org