Carter County residents had an opportunity to give back Monday afternoon when Medical Care’s Elizabethton location hosted the Marsh Regional Blood Center Blood Bus.
“We try to have at least one blood drive a year,” said Medical Care Marketing Coordinator Adam Hoover.
Hoover said the drives generally get a good response from the public, with many people coming out to give blood to help others.
Marsh Donor Tech Sarah Saylor agreed there was good participation in the drives.
“We want to be able to collect as many units as we can at these blood drives,” Saylor said. “We provide blood to 22 Wellmont facilities, a few Mountain States Health Alliance facilities and are backup for the Veterans Administration hospital. We need to collect as much as we can.”
Medical Care employee Vanessa Harrison used her lunch break to participate. Harrison has been donating blood for years, participating in her first blood drive while still in high school.
“It is a good chance to help out,” Harrison said. “There are people who need blood.”
For Kenneth Hopland, donating blood is the “right thing to do.”
“Donating blood saves lives,” he said.
Hoover said it was important to host blood drives with Marsh Regional Blood Center because all of the blood collected would remain in the area.
“When you donate at Medical Care with Marsh, it is good because you can know the blood will stay in the community to help the people who need it,” Hoover said.
To donate blood, Saylor said people need to weigh at least 110 pounds, and should eat a well-balanced meal before donating. Donors will complete a healthy questionnaire and will have some physical screening completed before donating. Also, first-time donors need to bring a photo ID.
Hoover said Medical Care has another blood drive planned for its Johnson City location on July 28 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.