At We Are Blood, we strive to create accessible and welcoming environments for our donors. It’s our priority to engage with organizations, businesses, and individuals of various groups, as we aim to foster an inclusive blood donor community that reflects the vibrant and diverse community we serve.
National Minority Donor Awareness Month is a time to celebrate our blood donors from diverse communities and call more donors to action to protect the blood supply, ensuring equitable access for blood transfusions for ALL patients.
So much. So needed.
Did you know over 50% of individuals in communities of color have O type blood? Roughly 53% of the Black/African American community and over 56% of Hispanic/Latinx community have O type blood. What’s great about that is O+ blood can be given to any other positive blood type; whereas O- blood can be given to patients of any blood type.
Type O blood is routinely in short supply and high demand because it can be transfused to 80% of individuals. So, it’s critically important that we have a diverse donor community to meet the increasing need for transfusion patients across Central Texas.
People Need People
BIPOC donors are essential to meeting the needs of patients in our area. Patients of all races and ethnicities need blood transfusions for various life events, and patients experience better results when they receive blood from someone of a similar background. This is primarily due to genetics, more specifically the red call antigens that are distinct to different populations.
Take sickle cell disease as an example. Sickle cell is widely known to primarily impact the African American community. Research has found that 1 in 3 Black/African American donors are a match for a sickle cell patient; whereas only 1 in 40 are a match from other ethnicities.
However, only 3% of the eligible population in Central Texas donates; and, of the donations received, only a fraction of them come from donors from diverse backgrounds. In fact, nation-wide, only 2% of the Black population donates blood and less than 5% of our Hispanic population does. What’s more, combined, both the Black and Hispanic communities make up close to 40% of the population in Central Texas. Imagine the lives that could be saved by welcoming diverse donors through our doors!
Save Lives Locally
You could have superpowers. All you have to do is provide 1 hour for 1 donation every 2-ish months, and you can save up to 3 lives each time!
If you feel inspired to support We Are Blood and the community blood supply, we encourage you to learn more about donor eligibility, book an appointment to donate at one of our four local donor centers or mobile drives, or sign up to host a blood drive in your community.
To learn about the vital role diverse blood donors play in saving lives, visit America’s Blood Centers site for more information.