Blood Donations Needed After Pandemic Decline

By Tabby Fitzgerald F0R TheStatehouseFile.com

INDIANAPOLIS— During a practice for the Indy 500 in 2015, IndyCar driver James Hinchcliffe had an accident during which his body was pierced by part of the car, which hit an artery.  On the drive from Indianapolis Motor Speedway to Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, Hinchcliffe needed 22 units of blood to stay alive.

Since then, Hinchcliffe has been an advocate for the American Red Cross and helped with a number of its blood drives, including the one held today.

“As someone that has benefited directly from having 22 units on hand to keep me alive, I have now made it my mission to educate people on how important it really is to come out and donate whenever you get the opportunity,” Hinchcliffe said in a Red Cross video on its Facebook page.  “For me, it was an absolute life-changing moment, and I want to try to pay that forward.”

In the United States, only 3% of eligible people give blood each year even though someone needs blood every 2 seconds. Although there was an overall decline in blood donations during COVID-19, it is still safe to give blood and is needed, according to American Red Cross regional communications manager Hyacinth Rucker and account manager Sandra Ryden.

The American Red Cross recently partnered with IndyCar and Hinchcliffe to host its yearly Indianapolis Motor Speedway Blood Drive at Speedway Indoor Karting, which is owned by former race car driver Sarah Fisher. Unlike in previous years, the event took place at Speedway Indoor Karting because of the COVID-19 protocols IMS has in place.

“The need for blood continues,” Ryden said. “It never goes away.”

The American Red Cross wasn’t the only organization hosting an event leading up to the Indy 500. The Marion County Health Department held a pop-up vaccine clinic on Main Street in Speedway Thursday and Friday. Those who participated were eligible to receive one of four special-edition IndyCar helmets signed by every driver participating in this year’s race.

Learn about other opportunities to give blood through the Red Cross: www.redcrossblood.org.

FOOTNOTE: Tabby Fitzgerald is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.