Versiti Michigan Inc

Programs: For over 62 years, michigan blood has proudly served michigan hospitals as an independent, community-based, nonprofit blood center. In addition to blood donation, michigan blood administers a variety of key programs and specialty services that further our lifesaving mission. These services include a nationally recognized center for the national marrow donor program, one of only 25 public cord blood banks in america, and we work alongside local hospitals to deliver a number of medical services and therapeutic procedures. Michigan blood is also affiliated with versiti, an organization whose members share resources and expertise to improve patient outcomes, as well as conduct leading edge medical research and provide nationwide diagnostic lab services. To learn more about the program services michigan blood provides please see detailed descriptions below: blood donation: volunteer blood donors give blood at eight permanent donor centers throughout michigan and at blood drives hosted by community organizations and businesses. Each michigan blood region also operates a self-contained blood center on wheels. These "blood buses" help expand our reach to small communities and urban areas where space is at a premium. See www. Miblood. Org for a comprehensive list of donation locations. Apheresis: special equipment makes it possible to collect one or more specific blood components from a donor, while returning the remaining components back to the donor. Apheresis donations allow a greater quantity of one component to be drawn versus a standard whole blood donation. These larger component-specific donations help reduce the number of donors a patient is exposed to, which is preferred by most physicians. Also, patients with diseases such as ttp, kidney rejections, myasthenia gravis, sickle cell disease, or leukemia can be treated by the removal of one or more blood components using therapeutic apheresis technology. Michigan blood staff and equipment travel to grand rapids area hospitals to perform roughly 2,000 procedure's annually. Marrow/stem cell program: in the past 20 years, michigan blood/versiti nmdp services has established one of the premier recruitment donor center records in the united states. Michigan blood/versiti added more than 134,000 individuals with advanced tissue typing to the registry of potential stem cell donors maintained by the be the match registry (national marrow donor program). In 2010, the donor center received the donor management recognition award, a lifetime achievement award. Nmdp services also provides support services for patients and families seeking compatible stem cell donors. Stem cell transplants remain the primary source of hope for patients with certain kinds of life-threatening diseases. Michigan blood has helped facilitate lifesaving stem cell transplants for over 700 people around the world. Cord blood bank/stem cell processing laboratory: michigan blood cord blood bank, the first of its kind in michigan, has collected and stored blood from more than 4,234 umbilical cords. Cord blood is rich in stem cells and cord blood transplantation is finding application in children and adults around the globe suffering from certain life-threatening diseases. Local availability of stem cell collection, processing, storage, and pre-transplant preparation supports the local transplant program's ability to offer advanced medical care. It also offers increased convenience and reduced stress for patients and families who previously had to travel long distances for transplant services. Cellular therapy: as part of ever-changing medical landscape, michigan blood supports personalized cellular therapy treatments used in a number of cancers and other life-threatening diseases. For instance, michigan blood collects cells from prostate cancer patients to be used in the preparation of personalized treatments. Other applications are routinely being researched and trialed in hopes of gaining fda approval. Michigan blood also collects patient white cells and processes them with uv light to help treat graft vs. Host disease and cutaneous t-cell lymphoma. Dna/hla laboratory: this laboratory uses special techniques to conduct tissue typing at the genetic code level to evaluate donor-patient compatibility before transplantation. Local availability of these services helps doctors respond faster to urgent patient needs caused by aggressive diseases. Patients with transfusion/pregnancy-related sensitivities also benefit from the services of the dna/hla laboratory which helps physicians diagnose, treat and find appropriate blood products. The dna/hla laboratory also types apheresis donors to identify life-saving matches for patients needing component transfusion. Reference laboratory: patients with complex transfusion-related sensitivities benefit from the services of the red cell reference laboratory, which provides information that helps physicians diagnose and treat complicated cases and find rare blood types for transfusion. These patients often are critically ill and may suffer serious complications (including death) without special laboratory services to help their doctors assess the risks of transfusion reactions and donor/recipient incompatibilities. Volunteerism: michigan blood offers a wide variety of opportunities for community members interested in volunteering their time to help their community and support michigan blood's lifesaving mission.