News & Success Stories

Recognized Partners across San Diego County are the driving force behind the strength, reach and impact of the Live Well San Diego vision. Read their inspiring success stories below.

San Diego Blood Bank Marks 75 Years of Dedication

Post Date:01/13/2025 12:15 PM

 3x1 San Diego Blood Bank banner

Submitted by: Claudine Van Gonka, Director of Community Relations and Media, San Diego Blood Bank 

 

The year 2025 marks the San Diego Blood Bank’s 75th anniversary of saving lives in partnership with our community. We are energized by the opportunity to celebrate this legacy and the impact we have achieved through our partnerships with blood donors and local organizations like the Recognized Partners of Live Well San Diego. 

We kick off our anniversary by celebrating National Blood Donor Month. Throughout January, San Diego Blood Bank will honor committed blood donors and invite those who have never donated before to give the gift of life.  

In April 2024, in a first of its kind event, the San Diego Blood Bank connected one of their blood recipients with her blood donors. Ten year old National City resident Kamila, who receives blood transfusions regularly to treat a rare form of anemia, got the chance to meet five people whose blood donations personally impacted her. Kamila and her family thanked the donors for the blood she’s received since she first started getting blood transfusions at two months old. To date, Kamila has received over 185 blood transfusions. She spends four- to six-hour days at the hospital for blood transfusions every three weeks and will require transfusions for the rest of her life. Kamila has e-beta thalassemia, an inherited blood disorder that limits her body’s ability to make hemoglobin and healthy red blood cells.

Kamila's mom, Maria, was emotional as she met some of the people whose blood donations help keep her daughter going each month.

“I can’t even describe how it feels – these are the people who are the reason that she is here and happy, and smiling and healthy,” she said.

A few of the donors thanked San Diego Blood Bank for giving them a chance to meet Kamila.

“It was an amazing experience to be able to meet someone who received the donation that I gave,” said donor Michael Kim. “To be able to impact someone like that, it’s pretty amazing. It means a lot to be able to see how this little donation really makes a big impact on someone.”

In fiscal year 23-24, San Diego Blood Bank collected over 189,600 blood products from more than 50,500 individual blood donors, including 14,672 first time donors. These products have the ability to impact the lives of over 151,600 hospital patients throughout Southern California.

Since its launch three years ago, the San Diego Blood Bank Guardians Circle has grown to over 12,000 dedicated members who regularly commit to donating blood. This elite group of donors contributed 47,053 donations in FY 23-24 alone, helping to save an estimated 141,159 lives. With an average of 4.26 donations per year, Guardians Circle members exemplify the power of consistent, community-driven support.

Through our Precision BloodTM program, San Diego Blood Bank is transforming transfusion medicine. Thanks to generous support from financial partners, we have genetically analyzed over 30,000 donor samples, paving the way for more precise blood matches. This program may benefit patients with conditions like sickle cell disease, where matched blood is critical for successful treatment. Precision Blood aims to set a new standard for personalized transfusion care, help meet patients' unique transfusion needs, and improve their health outcomes.

With over 7,600 participants recruited through San Diego Blood Bank, the All of Us Research Program is creating one of the most diverse health databases in history. This program aims to drive medical research that reflects the diversity of our population, providing insights into health conditions and treatments for all. By participating in this initiative, we are contributing to a future of more inclusive, effective healthcare.

San Diego Blood Bank collaborates with other Live Well San Diego partners in various ways. In 2024, San Diego Blood Bank  hosted blood drives in partnership with Sharp HealthCare to collect over 12,000 units of blood products, with SDG&E to collect over 4,000 units of blood products and, with County of San Diego collect over 10,000 units of blood products through their annual month-long blood drive. 2025 will mark nine years of saving lives with the San Diego Padres. Since 2017, the Padres have helped collect more than 3,600 pints of blood, impacting up to 10,800 lives in Southern California.

San Diego Blood Bank, which also operates as Southern California Blood Bank serves hospitals throughout Southern California. We are dedicated to community health by providing a reliable supply of blood to patients in need. Our mission is connecting diverse communities to save and improve lives through blood and biotherapies and our vision is to be an integral leader in advancing health and wellness through medical innovation.

San Diego Blood Bank is the primary blood provider to Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego and the safety net for hospitals in our region. Every year, more than 150,000 units of blood provided by San Diego Blood Bank are transfused into patients of all ages, socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds throughout Southern California. These patients are struggling with life-threatening medical conditions including cancer and other blood disorders, severe burns, organ transplants, emergency surgery, trauma, childbirth complications and more.

There are many ways for you to give: 

Learn more at sandiegobloodbank.org.  

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