Source: CommunityBloodServices.org
New Jersey residents have the opportunity to help local hospitals and residents in need this month, with assistance from Community Blood Services.
The Bergen County-based organization will hold 49 community blood drives throughout November in ten New Jersey counties, along with two counties in New York. The process is quick and easy, and no advance registration is required. All donors will receive a free cholesterol screening, and in addition will be given access – exclusively on the day of their donation – to the online “Donor Express” health questionnaire, which helps to streamline the actual blood donation process.
“As we’ve moved into the fall, we continue to encourage residents to support the needs of their local hospitals,” says Robert Kessler, the Community Blood Services recruitment director. “Visiting one of our open drives is a perfect way to make a feel-good donation as the holidays approach.
Healthy individuals age 16 or older, who weigh at least 110 pounds, may donate blood; 16- and 17-year-olds must have signed consent forms (available at CommunityBloodServices.org) and proof of birth date. Donors should eat a moderate meal prior to donating, and also bring identification showing their signature.
On occasion, last-minute changes to scheduling for a donation event will occur. As a result, it is recommended that anyone planning to donate blood at one of Community Blood Services’ November donation events call toll-free, at 201-251-3703, to confirm timing and location details.
Full details and a schedule of November NJ blood donation events is available here.
Community Blood Services is a not-for-profit organization that has been devoted to supplying blood and blood products to hospitals in the NJ/NY region since 1953. Donations of blood, blood products, umbilical cord blood, stem cells, and bone marrow help to join individuals, organizations, businesses, and entire communities together in partnership with us to help save lives.
In 2015, Community Blood Services became part of Blood Systems Inc. (BSI) – one of the nation’s oldest and largest transfusion medical organizations. BSI also operates biological products distribution services, a quality consulting group, and a world-renowned transfusion medicine research institute. It also is a partner in the operation of high-volume donor testing laboratories.