Providing a Diverse Blood Supply with President and CEO H. Alan Watson, FACHE

I started my position at MEDIC Regional Blood Center in March 2023. Before that, I held several leadership positions at various East and Middle Tennessee hospitals and health systems. While leading a blood bank is different than a hospital or healthcare system there are similarities. Both require public outreach, both require compassion and empathy, and both require tough, strategic decision-making. One of the strategic goals I have for MEDIC is to represent our service area in our blood supply accurately. This includes collecting blood from all racial and ethnic groups to be sure we have the best-matched blood on hand for patients who need blood beyond blood types O, A, B, or AB. According to the 2020 Census, MEDIC’s service area is 87.3% white, 5.8% black, 3.4% Hispanic, and 1.4% Asian. Currently, the blood on our shelves does not reflect the diversity of our location. While blood types are important for trauma cases and transfusions in general, the science of chronic illness and blood diseases, like Sickle Cell Anemia, goes beyond the 4 blood types. This includes antigens, as covered in posts by our Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Watkins, and Reference Lab Manager, Shannon Braden. Blood from diverse donors allows the hospitals we serve to treat patients with the best care possible. For some patients, this can be a life-improving or life-saving therapy.  I encourage our community to assist MEDIC in achieving our goal of diversifying the blood supply in our region.