SIDNEY – The Sidney Apostolic Temple will host a blood drive Thursday, Dec. 15, from 3 to 7 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall, 210 S. Pomeroy Ave. Community Blood Center is honoring holiday season blood donors as “a force for good” with the “Rogue Blood Donor – A Story of Hope” Star Wars inspired T-shirt, free to everyone who registers to donate. Donors are encouraged to schedule an appointment online at www.DonorTime.com or call 800-388-GIVE.
The Star Wars saga, a favorite science fiction fantasy with its enduring theme of hope, returns to the silver screen this holiday season. The “Rogue Blood Donor – a Story of Hope” T-shirt is black with the iconic moon-sized space station in the shape of a blood drop. It’s free to anyone who registers to donate through Saturday, Jan. 7 at any CBC Donor Center and most CBC mobile blood drives.
The holiday period can be a challenging time for maintaining the area blood supply. If you must miss an appointment to donate please reschedule when you can. We especially encourage the continued support of type O whole blood donors and type A/B platelet and plasma donors.
Community Blood Center is now testing blood donations for the Zika virus in compliance with recommendations issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to protect the blood supply.
In August the FDA recommended universal testing of all donated whole blood and blood components for the Zika virus in the U.S. and its territories. Ohio and Indiana are among the states that were scheduled to begin testing by Nov. 18, 2016 or sooner. CBC began testing Monday, Nov. 14, 2016.
With Zika testing now in place, CBC is no longer deferring donors for travel to Zika endemic areas.
The new Zika testing system is investigational and all donations submitted for testing are part of a research study. By consenting to give blood donors are agreeing to participate in the research study. The results from the study will help develop better testing systems to protect the blood supply.
CBC reminds donors that non-Zika related travel restrictions still apply. They can impact the available blood supply by limiting the number of people able to donate. CBC encourages eligible donors to schedule appointments and donate when able.
Learn more at www.GivingBlood.org.
