It’s a true miracle that 55 people were willing to donate blood and blood products to save the life of a woman seriously injured in a motorcycle accident in 2016.
Barb Shoop was on the road recovering from a horrific motorcycle accident in Franklin County when a drunk driver swerved into her lane, slamming into her Harley motorcycle and crushing her arm. A nurse and emergency personnel on the scene tried to stop the bleeding by pulling off their T-shirts and stuffing them into the gaping hole in her leg that was only held by a small piece of skin.
Shoop was airlifted to a hospital in York, Pennsylvania, where she had to have 29 surgeries in 27 days, receiving 86 transfusions of blood and blood products from 55 different donors. That’s like being helped by a Greyhound bus full of strangers, all of whom donated blood at a regional donor center in the hopes of saving someone’s life.
“Isn’t that amazing?” Barb says. “I wouldn’t be alive if they had not donated. There is no medication, no artificial whatever that can replace blood. There is nowhere else to get blood but from someone else’s body. I needed it to live and to be here today.”
WellSpan, a nonprofit blood bank and organ donation center, is committed to providing life-saving transplants and services to patients in need. Every year, more than 7,500 people donate blood and blood products to WellSpan, helping to make a difference in the lives of thousands of patients.
The organization is always in need of additional donors, especially younger people, who are typically less likely to donate. If you’re in good health, you’re encouraged to consider making a donation. Simply visit WellSpan York Hospital for more information.
If you would like to learn more about how to donate blood, visit WellSpan York Hospital.
Source: www.wellspan.org