APhA to host blood drive at annual meeting

WASHINGTON — The American Pharmacists Association will host its 8th Annual Blood Drive and Bone Marrow Registry at the 2017 Annual Meeting & Exposition in San Francisco March 24 to 27.

In an effort to give back to the local San Francisco community, APhA is partnering with the Blood Centers of the Pacific, which services all San Francisco hospitals and helps more than 50,000 patients each year. Blood Centers of the Pacific processes over 200,000 blood components, and distributes about 145,000 pints of blood and almost 24,000 units of platelets to more than 50 hospitals annually.

“Sixty-eight units were collected and 24 new potential bone marrow donors were registered at the last blood drive and bone marrow registry,” said Todd McDonald, APhA Director, Meeting Services. “We’re hoping to surpass those numbers at this year’s drive.”

The Blood Drive and Bone Marrow Registry is geared toward annual meeting attendees but is also open to the public.

The American Pharmacists Association The American Pharmacists Association, founded in 1852 as the American Pharmaceutical Association, is a 501 (c)(6) organization, representing more than 63,000 practicing pharmacists, pharmaceutical scientists, student pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and others interested in advancing the profession. APhA is dedicated to helping all pharmacists improve medication use and advance patient care.