Critical Need for Volunteers to Help Deliver Blood to Hospitals

The American Red Cross needs special volunteers to deliver blood products to hospitals in their region and provide the vital link between blood donors and patients who need blood products.

Volunteers in the blood transportation specialist position have two important assignments — to transport blood from our blood collection sites to our labs for testing and processing, and to deliver blood products to hospitals in their area using a Red Cross-owned vehicle. These volunteers can schedule their own hours while helping patients in need.

Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood. That someone may be an accident or burn victim, a heart surgery or organ transplant patient, or a person receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or sickle cell disease. We need qualified, dependable drivers to help make this important delivery. Watch this video to hear from some of our volunteers who already do this valuable work.

Here several of our current volunteers describe why they continue to serve their community in this critical position:

A PERFECT FIT Volunteer Mike Huber reports volunteering as a blood transportation specialist is a perfect fit. “One day while I was delivering blood to the Veterans Administration Hospital in Houston, a Marine veteran in a wheelchair stopped me and thanked me for my service. Here was a man who I should have been thanking for his service and he was thanking me instead. As we shared an elevator on the ride up to the 3rd floor, he told me how the platelets that I was delivering were helping him to fight off the impacts of his cancer treatments."

VERY SATISFYING Tom Humphreys finds helping as a blood transportation specialist very fulfilling. “I donate blood regularly with the Red Cross and found out there was a need for blood transportation volunteers. I like driving, so this seemed like a good fit for me. It's a very easy volunteer position that gives a lot of satisfaction by playing a big role in saving lives."

MEANINGFUL Schedule your own hours. Enjoy the open road.  Help people in need. These are some of the reasons Mark Morrison decided to volunteer as a blood transportation specialist. He's able to schedule his own hours and spend time on the open road delivering lifesaving blood to hospitals. "It's a tangible thing when I can do something as a volunteer. It feels more personal and meaningful to me."

WHAT DOES IT TAKE? The blood transportation specialist will be asked to fill two to four shifts in their region each month, the assignment usually taking about four hours to complete. The need for these transports may be scheduled during the day, in the evening, and on weekends. Volunteers should be familiar with their area and be able to lift as much as 45 pounds. Training is provided by the Red Cross.

If helping hospital patients who need blood and blood products during their battle back to health is of interest to you, visit here for more information.