OneBlood to resume blood collections in St. Lucie County starting today, Martin County blood collections remain suspended in wake of dengue cases
In a follow up to a report nearly two weeks ago, Florida blood collection agency, OneBlood has announced it will resume blood collections from donors in St. Lucie County starting Sept. 23, according to a blood bank news release Sunday.
Blood donation
Image/ Waldszenen at en.wikipedia
However, they also say that blood collections from neighboring Martin County will remain temporarily suspended as more cases of dengue fever emerge from the Rio and Jensen Beach area.
“Based on the findings from the Florida Department of Health, the recent cases of Dengue Fever appear to be confined to the Rio and Jensen Beach areas of Martin County”, said Dr. Rita Reik, Chief Medical Officer for OneBlood.
“Safety of the blood supply is our top priority. With the threat of Dengue Fever minimized in St. Lucie County the blood center has determined it is safe to resume blood collections in St. Lucie County. Blood collections in Martin County will remain temporarily suspended until further notice”, Reik said.
The latest dengue fever update from Martin County last Wednesday shows that there has been 20 locally acquired cases of the mosquito borne disease in the Rio and Jensen Beach area.
OneBlood will remain in close contact with the Florida Department of Health and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and will be alerted should additional cases of Dengue Fever be reported.
The blood center urges people living in areas not impacted by Dengue Fever to please donate and help ensure safe and available blood for local hospitals and their patients.
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[…] this week, Florida blood bank, OneBlood announced they were resuming blood collections in St. Lucie County; however, blood collections in Martin County remain […]