San Diego Blood Bank: Serving Southern California Hospitals, Saving Lives, Advancing Health

Proudly Serving More Than 30 Southern California Hospitals to Save Lives and Advance Health

Since 1950, over 3 million lives have been saved! The community’s partnership and philanthropy are at the heart of San Diego Blood Bank’s mission – Saving Lives Today, Improving Life Tomorrow. San Diego Blood Bank’s ability to adapt during the pandemic, prioritize community needs, meet the blood demand supply for their hospital partners and respond quickly in emergencies means their mission continues. Collaboration with their hospital partners is also at the heart of their mission.

There is no way to predict when an accident will happen, and major traumas can quickly deplete a hospital’s blood supply. Regular blood donations are necessary to ensure trauma centers are prepared and have enough blood on the shelves for patients who need blood to survive the second an injured patient arrives.

San Diego Blood Bank is there for local patients, responding to hospital requests through STAT orders. Last year, 6,389 STAT deliveries were directly delivered to critically ill patients at operating rooms and trauma bays to transfuse immediately and save patient’s’ lives. Susan Stone, Chief Executive Officer of Sharp Coronado Hospital shared the importance of the Blood Bank “Our Patient Blood Management Team has been working steadily to conserve this precious resource and we are thankful to have such an incredible partner who continues to outperform the rest of the country and helps our hospitals save the lives of our patients each day.”

Blood products are also used to maintain Massive Transfusion Protocol (MTP) kits for use in emergency rooms in Level 1 and 2 trauma hospitals. MTP kits ensure hospitals have on-site, ready- to-transfuse platelets, plasma, and red blood cell units in cases of severe blood loss. Robert Simpson, Director of Hospital Services at the San Diego Blood Bank shared with GB Magazine, “Our community might be unaware of all the moving parts it takes for blood to get to the hospitals. We like it that way here at San Diego Blood Bank. We handle those pressures and make sure everything is smooth, so nobody in the community must worry.”

Through philanthropy, thousands of lives are saved every year. San Diego Blood Bank financial donors play an integral role in ensuring critical resources are available to collect, process, and distribute lifesaving blood to hospitals and their patients. Last year, 562 financial donors funded state-of-the-art resources including two bloodmobiles and critical blood collection technology needed to operate new donor centers at Liberty Station, Irvine Business District, and Chula Vista, such as Trima Accel apheresis devices and HemoFlow systems that enable San Diego Blood Bank to collect blood, plasma and platelets more efficiently.

Financial gifts come full circle and give meaning when we witness the impact of patients recovering and thriving. It is the generosity of blood and financial donors, and all community partners, that enable San Diego Blood Bank to remain resilient during challenging times and make San Diego Blood Bank a cornerstone of community health in our region and beyond.

Partner with San Diego Blood Bank and invest in life. To become a financial donor or corporate sponsor, please contact Sherry Serio, Vice President of Development at (619) 400-8188 or visit www.sdbbfoundation.org.

Between July 2020 and June 2021, San Diego Blood Bank distributed to Hospitals:

113,295 Red Blood Cell Units

Saving the lives of accident victims, leukemia patients and people suffering with kidney disease.

21,958 Platelet Units

Replenishing cancer patient’s platelets after chemotherapy treatments deplete their own platelets.

28,083 Plasma Products

A lifesaving infection fighter for burn victims.

6,095 COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Products

Donated by those who recovered from COVID-19, containing antibodies used to help patients fighting COVID-19.

75+ Neonatal Units Per Week

An effective treatment of red blood cell loss due to acute or chronic anemia in neonates with severe blood loss.