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Blood Systems announced that its 10 blood center brands including United Blood Services will unite as one

cohesive brand under the new name Vitalant. As one of the nation’s oldest and

largest comprehensive transfusion medicine organizations serving local

communities across 40 states including Louisiana, Vitalant’s 127 nationwide

donation centers and 30,000 mobile blood drives welcome more than 780,000

donors who supply 1.8 million donations per year.

“Our organization has grown to encompass blood donation centers and specialty

services from coast to coast. As transfusion medicine leaders, we embrace this

opportunity to combine our innovative capabilities,” said Vitalant President and CEO

Dave Green. “We invite the public to join us in generating more vital donations to

transform even more lives in communities across the United States.”

Unifying the combined capabilities and national presence of the organization’s many

brands, Vitalant brings together the benefits of a cohesive centralized support

structure and enhanced research opportunities to advance transfusion care and

reach people most in need. It also reflects a commitment to donors to ensure a

consistent and seamless experience across all centers and blood drives.

The 10 donation center brands that come together collectively under the name

Vitalant are: Blood Centers of the Pacific, BloodSource, Bonfils Blood Center,

Central Blood Bank, Community Blood Services, Inland Northwest Blood Center,

Lifeblood, LifeShare, LifeSource and United Blood Services, in addition to the

umbrella organization Blood Systems including its research institute and specialty

laboratory. Vitalant’s national headquarters is in Scottsdale, Ariz.

“United Blood Services has a more than 50-year history as a major blood center

serving the state of Louisiana,” said Danny Garrick, president of Vitalant operations

in the Southeast. “We remain committed to the communities with the same people

and purpose you’ve come to expect.”

Vitalant supports nearly 1,000 hospitals and health care entities throughout the

United States, impacting millions of lives. In addition to blood products, Vitalant

offers hospital partners transfusion services, medical consulting, quality guidance,

ongoing education, research and more.

There is a constant need for blood – in fact, nearly 5,000 blood donations are

needed each day to meet the needs of people throughout the country. At least 250

donations are needed each day to meet the needs of people throughout south

Louisiana. Statistics show that nearly 60 percent of blood donations come from

people over 40, and nearly 45 percent come from people older than 50. Vitalant

looks to inspire the next generation of blood donors, while building lasting

relationships with people of all ages.

“Vitalant’s purpose is to help people realize their life-transforming potential,” said

Chairman of the Board of Trustees Dr. Ron Waeckerlin. “A name change does not

change our commitment to the communities we serve in south Louisiana or the

people who count on us. In fact, our national presence allows us to effectively tap

into our network to ensure donations reach the people who need it most.”

The name Vitalant (“Vye-TAL-ent”) embodies something vital and full of life, and is

directly connected to the organization’s vision to create life-transforming outcomes

for nationwide communities.

Vitalant will maintain the same community-based staff in every donation center, and

donors will experience the personal, professional and comfortable level of service

they have come to trust and expect. In south Louisiana, Vitalant has three donation

centers and hosts up to an average of 100 blood drives every month. Visit the

Lafayette donor center at 1503 Bertrand Drive, or visit vitalant.org to find a mobile

blood drive near you.