January is National Blood Donor Month, and organizations like the American Red Cross, the American Association of Blood Banks and blood centers across the United States are gearing up to promote blood donation nationwide.

“Blood supply is low right now due to the holiday season,” said Madeline Haydon, a donor resources representative at the Puget Sound Blood Center (PSBC). “We have a one day supply of blood … but in a city like Seattle, we need a four-day supply. ”

To encourage people to donate, the PSBC opened all its donation centers, even those usually closed, for donations on January 7.

“One person can save three lives by donating blood,” Haydon said. But, depending on the use of the blood, it is good for varying amounts of time.

“From your blood, we can obtain red blood cells, which have a life span of 42 days, platelets, which have a life span of two days, and plasma, which has a life span of one year,” she said.

Platelets are tiny cell fragments that circulate throughout the blood and aid in blood clotting.

“A pint [of blood], which weighs approximately one pound, is collected during donations,” Haydon said. “Typically, women have approximately 10 pints and men have approximately 12 pints of blood.”

Only five percent of eligible donors actually give blood, Haydon said, despite the fact that 92 percent of the population will need blood if they live up to the age of 72.

Students make up 30 percent of blood donors, only 14 percent of which are college students.

Minors may donate after the age of 16, with picture identification and permission from a parent or guardian. The PSBC does not have an upper age limit.

At the college level, Haydon works with student groups as well as residence halls to implement blood drives. The Minority Association of Pre-Health Students, Alpha Epsilon Delta, the pre-med honor society and Lambda Theta Alpha are among the student groups at the UW that host blood drives.

Dasha Borisenko, a UW alumna and former intelligence officer for MAPS, said she helped organize blood drives as part of her officer duties.

There is a critical need for a more ethnically diverse blood supply, and in response, PSBC has set up a rare blood donor program.

“There are still a lot of misconceptions, such as ‘you can only donate once a year’, when actually you can donate up to six times a year,” Haydon said. “The number one reason people don’t give is because they are not asked personally. People that want to donate can go online to our Web site and check out what blood drives will be going on in their area by date.”

Haydon said the PSBC works to educate and promote blood donation.

“We strive towards the day when the participation rate of eligible blood donors is in the double digits,” she said.

[Reach reporter Chris Paredes at news@thedaily.washington.edu.]