America’s Blood Centers Honors HOSA Students and Leaders

Washington, DC, July 2, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — America’s Blood Centers (ABC), a national organization of independent, community-based blood centers that supply 60 percent of the nation’s blood supply, recently celebrated HOSA chapters and state associations for their exceptional blood collection efforts at the HOSA-Future Health Professionals’ 2024 International Leadership Conference in Houston, Texas. This partnership with community blood centers has resulted in more than 33,000 donors and more than 30,000 units of blood this academic year, with each donation having the potential to save many lives. At a time when the overall number of young donors is declining dramatically across the country, HOSA students saw an astonishing 43% more total donations than the previous year. Blood drives were also hosted by the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center throughout the three-day event, with more than 384 units of blood collected.

“We are honored to celebrate the extraordinary commitment of HOSA students, chapters and sororities to community blood center drives this academic year. Their efforts resulted in more than 33,000 donations, significantly strengthening the nation’s blood supply at a critical time. We are proud that our partnership with HOSA is helping to establish a culture of lifelong giving while building the next generation of blood donors,” said Kate Fry, CEO of America’s Blood Centers.

“HOSA is thrilled to partner with America’s Blood Centers and proud of the work of Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center at the HOSA International Leadership Conference,” said Karen Koeninger, HOSA Interim Executive Director. “HOSA members have a strong desire to give back to their community as part of their career path to becoming future health professionals, and ABC is an important part of their professional development!”

“Our team is still excited about HOSA ILC last week. Students and advisors left a part of themselves in Houston with 384 units donated over the three-day drive. We serve the largest medical center in the world and are incredibly grateful for the generous donations made to patients in the Houston area. We are grateful for HOSA’s donations and continued advocacy for blood donations worldwide,” said Kevin Shipley, Director of Donor Recruitment and Customer Service at Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center.

ABC and HOSA began a multi-year national partnership in 2022 to encourage blood donation and promote careers in community blood centers. As part of the partnership, ABC recognizes HOSA chapters and charter societies for their outstanding achievements in blood collection at the annual HOSA International Leadership Conference. All HOSA chapters were recognized at the event for their extraordinary commitment to blood donation and supporting the nation’s blood supply.

Southwest High School in San Diego, California, received special recognition on stage at the event for promoting the blood drive, and Sunrise Mountain High School in Peoria, Arizona, was recognized for its work organizing the blood drive during a time of critical need. Additionally, the following state associations were honored on stage for recruiting the most donors in their category: Hawaii (Small Chartered Association), South Carolina (Medium Chartered Association), and Texas (Large Chartered Association).

Founded in 1962, America’s Blood Centers is a national organization of independent, community-based blood centers. Its member organizations operate more than 600 blood collection centers, providing nearly 60 percent of the U.S. blood supply and one-quarter of Canada’s blood supply. These centers serve more than 150 million people and provide blood products and services to more than 3,500 hospitals and health care facilities in North America. All ABC US members are licensed and regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. For more information, visit www.AmericasBlood.org.

HOSA-Future Health Professionals offers a unique leadership development, motivation and recognition program exclusively for high school, post-secondary, middle school, adult and college students enrolled in health and biomedical science programs or interested in pursuing a career in the health professions. Since its inception in 1976, HOSA has grown steadily to more than 3.2 million members through 54 registered HOSAs nationwide and around the world. For more information, visit www.HOSA.org.

Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center is the only 24/7 supplier of blood and blood components to more than 170 hospitals and healthcare facilities in the 26-county Texas Gulf Coast region. Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center is a nonprofit organization accredited by the Food and Drug Administration. For more information or to help save lives, visit www.giveblood.org.

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• Photo from the Recognition Event at the International Leadership Conference