Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Blood need even greater because Hoxworth will not collect donations three times in September

Hoxworth Blood Center
/
Provided

Hoxworth Blood Center won't be collecting blood on three days they normally would have this month. Monday is Labor Day and the center is closed. And Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Oh says on September 14 and 15, collections will stop as Hoxworth goes dark.

“We are very busy at our blood center updating our computer system and some of our technology,” Oh says they're hoping more people will step up and give.

“I think it’s pretty easy. You can go to our website,” he says. “It’s always best if you can go ahead and arrange for a slot. We do a lot of walk-ins in a lot of our locations at a lot of times, but you may have to wait a bit longer if that’s the case because there’s no donation time reserved for you.”

Oh says the system update that's forcing the temporary closure could mean the process of donating gets streamlined.

“We should be able to have donors actually fill out some of those questions before they come in to donate. So that actually will cut that hour down to a much shorter time, because you’ll be able to complete the questions online and submit them and come in and not have to deal with that part of the donation process.”

The ask comes around Labor Day. Holidays traditionally mean a drop in donations.

Bill Rinehart started his radio career as a disc jockey in 1990. In 1994, he made the jump into journalism and has been reporting and delivering news on the radio ever since.