Give Blood: New Donation Center Opens At Milford Regional

MILFORD, MA — Milford Regional Medical Center, in partnership with the American Red Cross, is opening a Blood Donation Center at the hospital, the medical center announced last week.

The new, dedicated space for blood donations will be situated off the new Imaging Center’s waiting room where the old emergency department used to be located, and opens on Wednesday, Feb. 22, with a ribbon cutting at 9 .m. Those who come out to give blood on that day will receive a $5 Dunkin’ Donuts card as a thank you.

Milford Regional has participated in Red Cross blood drives for more than a decade, but they were limited by the availability of space, said the announcement. Trish Sablitz, director of Donor Recruitment, Massachusetts Blood Services Region, recognizes the contribution made by Milford Regional throughout the years.

“The Red Cross has always appreciated the support of Milford Regional Medical Center as one of our valued hospital partners,” she said in a statement. “We are so grateful to Milford Regional for this new opportunity to offer donors a dedicated space to help save patient lives.”

The need for volunteer blood donations across the country is great. Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood, and volunteer donors are the only source of blood and platelets for those requiring transfusions. In addition, donated blood must be constantly replenished because it only has a shelf life of 42 days. The Red Cross must collect a staggering 14,000 blood and platelet donations every day for patients at about 2,600 hospitals and transfusion centers nationwide, said the announcement.

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