BRTC’s Katrina Bozarth donating blood
PARAGOULD, AR. Dec. 24—On December 2, 2020, BRTC Paragould hosted an American Red Cross blood drive. There were 12 total donors, 5 first time donors, 11 units collected, and 33 potential lives saved. A thank you note sent to the college read, “When you made the decision to host a blood drive, you helped change lives.”
Ramonda Housh, Dean of Nursing and Allied Health, added, “According to the Red Cross, someone in the U.S. needs blood every two seconds. Approximately 43,000 pints of donated blood are used daily in the U.S and Canada, and that need has increased with the pandemic and the natural disasters we have encountered in 2020. Blood donations have significantly decreased this year as unprecedented numbers of blood drives have been canceled. Due to wildfires, hurricanes, other natural disasters, and the shutdown of many communities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the cancelation of these events have further limited the amount of blood available. In response, an urgent call-to-action was made by Peter Marks, M.D., Ph.D., director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, ‘We need people to start turning out in force to give blood.’ Donating blood takes about one hour of your time, and one pint of blood can save 3 lives.”
BRTC Paragould will host another blood drive on February 10 from 11:00 a.m.- 3:00p.m. For more information, contact Katrina Bozarth at (870) 239-0969 ext. 5200 or katrinaB@blackrivertech.edu. For more information about enrolling in Phlebotomy courses, visit https://blackrivertech.org/academics/allied-health/phlebotomy.