Naval Medical Center Portsmouth (NMCP) unveiled the new Armed Services Blood Program (ASBP) bloodmobile during a ribbon cutting ceremony, Oct. 17, in front of Bldg. 1.

Capt. Christopher Culp, commanding officer, delivered remarks and cut the ribbon with Lt. j.g. Alisa Agey, NMCP Blood Bank division officer.

"This new vehicle will significantly improve our ability to provide blood for our patients, as well as the Armed Services Blood Program," Culp said. "With the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as operations around the world, there is a huge need for us to provide blood when we can."

The new climate-controlled bus was in the works for approximately two years, and has many upgrades from the previous model. At 41 feet in length and 15 feet wide when expanded, the result is 1,000 square feet of interior space. To ensure patient comfort, there are four air conditioning units, as opposed to three in the previous mobile. Each donor bed comes equipped with its own personal TV and headset to allow the donor to feel at ease while they provide the invaluable gift of blood. The rear of the bus has two private screening rooms so that patients can confidentially provide information on their health history. As a plus, the new bus boasts a diesel engine which promotes fuel efficiency.

"The addition of our new reliable blood mobile will ensure that our team can perform a blood drive just about anywhere in the Hampton Roads area, and it will allow us to reach donors who are unable to reach our in-house donation location," Agey said. "Our blood donor team is responsible for providing more than 6,000 blood products annually in support of the ASBP."

The NMCP Blood Bank staff of approximately 20 people can conduct a blood drive for four days a week. The drives can be sponsored by any organization on any of the seven federal installations in the Hampton Roads region, and also at Fort Lee which is located near Petersburg, Virginia.

"We reach out to these organizations in the area and ensure that they are able to meet our criteria and fit us into the schedule," said Ralph Peters, the blood donor recruiter who sets up the bloodmobile schedule. "We even have commands that we have reoccurring drives with because they are populated with staff members that are eager to donate to this great cause."

The Blood Donor Center at NMCP is one of 19 in the continental United States and one of 22 worldwide supporting the ASBP. Each month, NMCP supplies the 500-unit quota set by the Armed Services Whole Blood Processing Lab-East, who then provides blood for operations overseas. Units collected during the numerous drives additionally support NMCP patient care by providing 250 blood product transfusions per month.
For information on scheduling the bloodmobile, contact the NMCP Blood Donor Center at 757-953-1717.

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For more news from Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, visit http://www.navy.mil/.