Bright and early on Monday, January 7 th, CBCNJ helped to kick off the state-wide initiative held in cooperation with the New Jersey State Blood Bank Task Force, New Jersey Hospital Association and its twenty-three member hospitals, and the New Jersey State Assembly. The initiative, sponsored Assemblyman Neil Cohen (D, District 20), hopes to increase the units of blood collected throughout the state and is concurrent with National Blood Donor Month.

Statewide Campaign to Increase Blood Collections in New Jersey a Cooperative Effort (L-R) Gary Carter, President & CEO of NJHA; Sally Wells, Administrator, NBAH; Mary Lou Mallada, Supervising Clinical Lab Evaluator, CLIS/Blood Bank Program from the NJ Dept. of Health & Senior Services; Mercy Kuriyan, M.D., Blood Bank Task Force Chairperson and head of Transfusion Medicine at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospitals in New Brunswick; Assemblyman Neil Cohen (D, District 20); Father Joseph Kukura, Director, The Catholic Health Care Partnership; Mary Ditri, Director, Professional Practice, NJHA; Renia Harris-Hellams, Assistant Vice President of Operations, RWJ University Hospital; Judy Daniels, Manager, Public Relations of The Blood Center of New Jersey, Dino DiStefano, Recruitment Manager, CBCNJ

As one of the state’s seven blood centers, CBCNJ has been actively promoting blood drives in the central New Jersey area in cooperation with state agencies and departments, and with our local hospitals.

New Jersey typically lags behind other states in blood collections. Nationally, 5% of the eligible population donates, but in New Jersey, it's only 2.5% -- half that amount. Last year over 72,000 units of blood were imported into NJ from other blood centers throughout the country, a trend that has been prevalent since 1998.

Aline Holmes, NJHA's Senior Vice President for Clinical Affairs, was the first blood donor of the statewide initiative. Congratulating her are CBCNJ phlebotomist Carol Kidd and NJHA's Mary Ditri, who coordinated the blood drive.

According to Gary Carter, President and CEO of the New Jersey Hospital Association, "Donations are used to help cancer patients, trauma victims, surgical patients and others in need of transfusions. Truth be told, our state has a dismal track record in blood donations. We routinely have to import blood from out of state to help our neighbors' right here at home. I’ve seen the good in the people of this state, and I know that we can do better," Carter continued.

Off to a Great Start! The first blood drive of the statewide initiative was held at New Jersey Hospital Association headquarters in Princeton. On hand to get the ball rolling: Mary Ditri, NJHA's Director of Professional Practice; Gary Carter, NJHA's President & CEO; Dino DiStefano Recruitment Manager of CBCNJ; and Assemblyman Neil Cohen (D, District 20)