Bloodmobile rolls out to campus
By Colin Rushovich
Dec. 7, 2005 9:00 p.m.
UCLA’s next blood drive may be a “drive” in
the most literal sense, as a brand-new bloodmobile makes its way
from Florida to Westwood in the next few weeks.
In an attempt to increase blood collection, the UCLA Medical
Center Auxiliary has donated a bloodmobile to the UCLA Medical
Center for the Auxiliary’s 50th anniversary.
The bloodmobile will be stationed on campus in an attempt to
provide convenience and visibility for students donating blood,
supplementing the UCLA Blood and Platelet Center’s
blood-donation efforts.
The primary motivation behind the bloodmobile is to increase
collections, said Linda Goss, officer of outreach and recruitment
for center.
“We can increase donations by taking our blood collection
efforts closer to our donors’ places of work and
study,” said David Callender, associate vice chancellor and
CEO of the UCLA Hospital System, in a statement.
The bloodmobile will cost $160,550, but will save the UCLA
Medical Center approximately $330,000 in costs in its first year,
Callender said in the statement.
“(At the Medical Center) we currently collect 60 percent
of the blood we use, and our goal is to draw 90 percent of what the
hospital uses. The more blood we collect, the less the hospital has
to purchase from the American Red Cross,” he said.
But Goss said it’s not all about money.
“Our most important thing that we want is enough blood for
all our patients,” Goss said.
She said blood shortages have been a major concern for the UCLA
Medical Center in the past. Over the past Thanksgiving weekend,
there was a Medical Center patient who needed type-O blood, but
there was a shortage, Goss said.
The increased visibility provided by the bloodmobile will
definitely increase donation and could help with shortages, Goss
said.
She said the Medical Center will locate the bloodmobile in
various areas with high foot traffic that can accommodate the
vehicle, such as Bruin Plaza and the flagpole near Royce Hall.
She said the bus’ arrival was delayed because of
difficulty in deciding on the exterior graphics.
The bloodmobile will also supplement fliers as another
blood-donation advertisement, said Tamaron Jang, director of the
UCLA Student Welfare Commission Blood Drive. During quarterly blood
drives, the bloodmobile will be used as a donation center.
Student Welfare Commissioner Tracy Pham said the
bloodmobile’s visibility will help quarterly blood drive
efforts.
The bloodmobile will further ensure that students remember to
donate blood and give back to the community, Pham said.
Services of the bloodmobile include collection of whole blood
and double red blood cells, Goss said, adding that whole-blood
donation is the preferred donation method for most students. But
those who have more blood and iron can donate twice the amount of
red blood cells through a special procedure that takes twice as
long as a typical blood donation, he said.
Goss said UCLA employees will receive eight hours of
“blood time” ““ paid time off ““ for donating
double red blood cells, while employees who donate single red blood
cells will receive four hours.
The new bloodmobile is expected to generate about the same
amount of blood as the current donor center, which is approximately
25 units of blood each day, Goss said.
