Hosting blood drives is always an exciting opportunity for Ross Medical Education Center campuses. As a healthcare training organization, it’s important for our students, staff, and faculty to be personally invested and aware of the medical needs both locally and nationally. Recently, our Ross campus in Ontario, Ohio got to partner with the American Red Cross to host first a speaker from their organization and then, later in the month, for a blood drive.
The Ontario campus welcomed Emily Allen from the American Red Cross this June. Emily has made it out to the campus several times in the past to discuss upcoming blood drives and the importance of blood donation. This time their blood drive was held on June 9th, and they were once again excited to pack their donation schedule!
Emily’s knowledge of the donation process and the American Red Cross once again impressed everyone at the campus, and she worked hard to share her knowledge with the students. Some of the Ontario students had never donated before, and after Emily’s presentation they were excited to sign up as first time donors. During the presentation the donation process is discussed along with who gets the donated blood and the areas that their region serves. As of June 1st they were already at 82% of their scheduled appointments!
Erin Slusher, Financial Aid Student Support Representative at Ross, shared about some of her experiences with the American Red Cross as well, “I got involved with the American Red Cross when I was a teenager. They do so much more than collect blood. I previously worked for Target where we did blood drives at least once a year. When I made the move to Ross, I became the community event coordinator for our campus. We do two blood drives a year – June and December. The last couple we have held we have maxed out our appointments and even took walk ins! It is open to the public, I always create an event on Facebook and share it with my friends as well as the neighboring businesses.”
All their hard work paid off! The campus once again packed their schedule and exceeded their goal. They reached 20 donors which can help save the lives of up to 60 people! They are already excited to move their goal up again in December!
Are you interested in hosting a blood drive with the American Red Cross? To find out more, visit their website at www.redcross.org or the American Red Cross Facebook page.