Team competition to boost year-long blood driveby Heather MurphyPublic Relations Starting July 1, MUSC will host a year-long, hospitalwide blood drive that has the Red Cross hoping to increase its current donation rate by 80 percent. “I’ve always been disappointed that giving hasn’t been a bigger priority. I’m glad we’re going to focus on this,” said Stuart Smith, CEO of MUSC Medical Center. As Smith gave blood in the donor room recently, he said, “It’s not hard to find time to do it. They call me and we schedule an appointment. It’s also easy because the donation room is here in the hospital.” Currently, South Carolinians donate 25,000 units of blood a year but use 35,000 a year. Since Jan. 1, the Red Cross borrowed more than 7,000 units of blood from other regions of the country. “Yes, we’ve been able to get the units to fulfill our need but we can’t rely on other regions to support us,” said Matt Alsante of the Red Cross. It is easy to see why the Red Cross merged with MUSC organizers in an unprecedented attempt to raise the number of units per day from 10 to 18. Anticipating the drive, the donor room changed its hours from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday. The first quarter of the yearlong drive ends in September. The idea is to have MUSC staff, from the president’s office to the physical plant, breaking out into teams of 25 people. Each team picks a captain, obtains a number and chooses a nickname. The first quarter competition among the teams will be to see who can donate 25 units first, with a special gift for the winners. All of those participating will receive donation gifts and first-time donors will be recognized. The contests and gifts for the winning teams will change quarterly, with a grand prize awarded at the end of the year to the team donating the most units overall. Committee Members
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