Mary Eiler Radl said she has not donated blood for more than 10 years. But once the Tomah resident heard about the local blood supply shortage, she decided it was time to get back at it.
“This is the first time I’ve donated with Versiti. I was a regular donor and then I traveled outside the country a couple of times which excluded me from donating and I got out of the habit,” said Eiler Radl who was one of nearly 60 donors who attended a two-day Versiti BloodCenter of Wisconsin / Tomah Health blood drive at Tomah’s Recreation Park Feb. 21 & 22.
Eiler Radl said she was not aware that the blood collected during the Tomah drives helps to support nearly 50 hospitals in Wisconsin including Tomah Health. “That makes me feel even better. The blood’s going to come back to our area or at least be available to our local community and our local citizens.”
Versiti officials said the two-day drive collected blood products that will save 174 lives. “Having a stable blood supply requires all eligible donors to give continuously when they can to assure that our community hospitals, such as Tomah Health, have the blood that they need at all times,” said Blood Center account representative Emalea Cogdill.
“If you really think about it, you can’t get blood from, you know, a turnip, so to speak,” said Eiler Radl. “We can’t get it from anywhere else. So how important is it if your friend or family needs blood and nobody’s donating? It’s a matter of life and death and having a secure and ample supply of blood just means security for all of us.”
Officials say more than 50% of Versiti’s blood supply comes from local drives.
Eiler Radl added she plans to continue donating and encouraged others to donate. “It’s really pretty easy. I’m actually sitting here in a lounge chair, and it doesn’t take that long and it’s pretty painless, so I strongly encourage anybody if you haven’t tried it, give it a try. I definitely want to keep doing this,” she added.
Cogdill said one in seven patients entering a hospital will require a blood product. “Without community blood drives and generous donors, we can’t meet that demand,” she added.
Tomah area residents can donate during the next scheduled Versiti / Tomah Health blood drive May 1 & 2.