Spots remain open for Thursday’s blood drive

Several spots are available for those who wish to donate blood during UNMC’s blood drive on Thursday at the Center for Healthy Living.

Of the 85 available donation slots, about 75 had been filled as of Tuesday morning with several openings remaining between 10:45 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.

“We simply need extra help to meet the goal of this drive.” Peter Pellerito

Because of scheduling overlap, donors who participated in a Jan. 17 drive at The Nebraska Medical Center will not be able to participate in Thursday’s drive because the Red Cross-mandated 56-day span will not have passed between donations.

This development has organizers of Thursday’s drive urging those who have never donated blood before to take a leap and give this time.

“We simply need extra help to meet the goal of this drive,” said Peter Pellerito of the UNMC Center for Healthy living who is one of the drive’s organizers.

About 80 donors are needed to help meet the drive’s goal of 66 units of blood, he said.

Medical facilities, including UNMC’s hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center, depend on donated blood to conduct surgeries, transfusions and other treatments.

The Red Cross has an electronic scheduling system that will be used for this drive. Those wishing to donate can schedule appointments for the drive at http://givebloodgivelife.org.

Participants can find the UNMC drive by first clicking on our region and then entering the UNMC drive sponsor code — which is 1199 — or by entering an Omaha ZIP code (68198) and scrolling down to the UNMC drive on March 6.

Gift bags stuffed with T-shirts will be raffled off during the blood drive.

Those who are experiencing problems with the registration Web site can call Pellerito for assistance at 559-5253.