Northeast Ohio is facing a potential shortfall in blood donations this holiday season.
The American Red Cross is holding blood drives across the region in anticipation of winter weather that could cancel future blood drives.
Each day, the region's 70 hospitals require about 500 pints of blood, Ryan Lang, of the American Red Cross’ Northern Ohio Region, said — and having an adequate supply can save lives.
“We could have people that need dozens of units of blood at one time," Lang said. "We had a Northeast Ohio woman who went in to give birth, there were complications and she required 56 units of blood.”
Places like Holmes County with large Amish populations may be at particular risk of shortages, he said.
“They experience more trauma with accidents in those areas involving farm equipment and on the roads," Lang said. "A lot of it has to do with mothers birthing at home and complications with childbirth.”
Lang said universal donors — those with Type O blood — are especially welcome.
This past January, the Red Cross announced it had to cancel hundreds of blood drives across the U.S. due to weather and wildfires in California.
Blood shortages can mean patients receive delayed treatment for conditions such as severe anemia, according to the Red Cross.
"It can be tempting to wonder if we truly need blood transfusions as much as we did in the past, or to question whether there may be alternatives to blood transfusion that could be pursued," Dr. Eric Gehrie, executive medical director for the American Red Cross, wrote in 2024. "Yet the only feasible source of blood for transfusion is the arm of a generous blood donor."
People can schedule donations at locations in Cleveland, Akron and Parma, or search for local drives online.
