Chamber Chat
The Chamber Chat - Danville Indiana Podcast informs, connects, and entertains by spotlighting local businesses, community leaders, and events that shape Danville, Indiana. Each episode shares engaging conversations and valuable insights that strengthen community connections and celebrate what makes Danville Indiana thrive.
Chamber Chat
🩸 Chamber Chat Podcast Spotlight: Versiti Blood Center of Indiana 🩸
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Every blood donation has the power to save lives right here in our community. ❤️ On this episode of the Chamber Chat Podcast, we’re joined by our Chamber Member, Versiti, to talk about the importance of blood donation, how local donors make a difference every day, and why maintaining a strong blood supply matters for hospitals and emergency care across Indiana.
We’re also excited to partner with Versiti for upcoming Blood Donation Drives at the Danville Farmers Market this June & August! Tune in for dates and details on how YOU can make a difference this summer
📍 Learn more or schedule a donation:
🌐 https://versiti.org
📞 800-632-4722
📧 donate.in@versiti.org
Together, we can make an impact — one donation at a time. 💪🩸
#ChamberChatPodcast #Versiti #BloodDonation #SaveLives #DanvilleIndiana #CommunityStrong #GiveBlood #FarmersMarket #DanvilleChamber
Welcome to the chamber chat. You're the source of everything down the business topics. We hope you enjoy the show.
SPEAKER_02Chamber Chat. Hey everyone, welcome back to the Chamber Chat. It's Jocelyn and Kelly. And today we are here with Hannah Akers.
SPEAKER_04And my name is Nick Brown. I'm with Versity Blood Center of Indiana.
SPEAKER_02Alright, awesome. Okay, so what inspired each of you to work in this blood jar and stuff? Yeah, go ahead, Jake.
SPEAKER_04My uh my inspiration, my mother's side, the whole side of the family all came from a medical background, and so it could be nurses, paramedics, EMTs, and I wanted to do something similar but different. And um there's a couple of reasons why I love working at Versity. I uh number one, I get to work with awesome people, and I don't just say that because Hannah's sitting next to me, but um because I truly do love the people that I work with, and uh, but the other reason is because I feel great at the end of the day when I go home and I get to tell people uh that I get to help save lives for a living. And uh and so it's to me, I don't mind waking up every day uh to do this.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I agree. Um a lot of why I do what I do is to help people help other people and creating that community aspect and really just supporting the mission that we do get to do and save lives.
SPEAKER_03So, what are your roles at each?
SPEAKER_00Um, so I'm the account rep for majority of Hendricks County. I serve um Avon, Danville, Brownsburg, Pittsburgh areas, and my job is to connect community partners like churches, um chambers, and all sorts of different community groups um to the mission. So we bring bring blood drives to you guys.
SPEAKER_04Yep, and I'm the senior director of blood operations. I've been with Versity for about 15 years now. I oversee our donor recruitment team. There's 14 HANAs uh across the state. Um and uh also our field marketing team and then our collection operation. So the team that comes here to do the blood drives, uh the team that the phlebamas to collect the blood as well.
SPEAKER_03Gotcha. You're probably good at it because you showed up with uh scones from breadbaskets. Yes, so we take bribery very seriously here.
SPEAKER_04Well, it's funny because um it's very important part of our mission to think local, and uh the all the blood that we collect stays local, right? And so as I was thinking, I was like, well, I had been by the breadbasket before and not been there, and it's proximal. I actually walked over from there, and so I thought it would be great to uh to bring you know something local to the local chamber, right? Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03We love that. We love that. Um, so what is the most rewarding part of your job?
SPEAKER_00I think the most rewarding part of my job is like connecting people to what we do. Um, at the end of the day, every unit of blood saves three lives. Um, and that impact can grow and grow and grow. Every time someone walks through the door, we're showing them the potential that they have and connecting them to the ability to save a life, so someone they probably will never meet. So that's really rewarding for me.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I would say um the one of the most interesting things is that many people that don't do not donate blood is because someone's never asked them or they don't understand the importance of blood donation. And so that education piece, I think, is also very important. So I really enjoy educating people on the importance of blood, why it's needed, how it's utilized. Uh, we get to go, I get to go, I've been with Hannah to high school uh presentations and and even elementaries, you know, and so helping even our youth understand um the importance of blood donation and like how it could help save even their family lives locally.
SPEAKER_00So, how old do you have to be to donate blood? You have to be 16 with pretzel consent, 17 or older. You can do it of your own free will. Gotcha. Okay.
SPEAKER_03I just think it's interesting you said so for one unit saves three lives. I think a lot of people have the mindset uh, well, it doesn't really matter if I donate. But three lives, that's pretty. That's a substantial number. I was thinking one for one, you know.
SPEAKER_00Like so, blood has three different products that we separate into. So your red blood cells, what makes it red? And then your platelets and your plasma. And we separate those units because they're it into three products because they're used for different things.
SPEAKER_03And so is that something you guys do here locally in Indiana then?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, we would love. Anytime you would want to come, we love giving tours of our manufacturing where we also test the blood. Uh here, right here in Indianapolis, we have the Midwest Largest Under Testing Lab. And uh, we actually test all the blood samples in the region, uh, not just from Bursty Blood Centers, but from others. And so um what the work that we do is people don't realize it as they're driving down the road, what we're doing in there. Um, but that occurs uh right there in those labs. I think one of the things, as you mentioned, those three components, um, and then you talk about how many people donate. Right now, about three to four percent of people donate blood. And uh probably something around, they estimate around 37% of people are eligible to donate blood. And uh, and so if we could only get 1% more, it doesn't sound like much, but 1% more would actually ensure that we don't have any blood shortages in our local hospitals.
SPEAKER_03And we are having blood shortages.
SPEAKER_04That happens, not right now, thankfully. Yeah, knock on the wood. I wouldn't say surplus either. Yeah, but it it's interesting because the shelf life of blood, as she mentioned, platelets is five days, and and for red blood cells, it's 42 days. So if you think about it, um it I don't want to compare it to milk, but similarly, we have to always keep the shelf stocked, right? And so it's very important. And there are special um types of blood, for example, on platelets, they love blood types A posit, B posit. For red cells, they love O negative, O positive. And so if you were any of those, they probably call you a lot, right? And uh A negative, B negative. So there are other types that um can be transfused into patients dependent upon their blood type as well. And so we're always looking for more O negative, O positive uh donations because um our patients utilize those blood components the most. And so those are generally the ones in the shortest supply.
SPEAKER_03Okay. So if someone was coming to donate for the first time, what is something, what should they expect?
SPEAKER_00It's a pretty easy process and we walk you through the whole entire thing. So you arrive, bring your photo ID, make sure you're well hydrated ahead of time, and there's a short questionnaire that you fill out. Basically, have you traveled recently? Are you feeling well today? Questions like that that help you help us determine that you are healthy enough to donate the blood. Then there's a mini physical. Um we just do a finger prick for hemoglobin, check your pulse, your blood pressure. We'll also um ask your height and weight and those things again to protect you as the donor, make sure you're eligible. And then after that's completed, as long as you pass everything, you'll move to the phlebotomist, and your phlebotomist takes um takes you through the rest of it. Uh, they'll find uh do a vein check, a good suitable vein. Um, then they'll clean the area and then do the venipuncture, and you'll they'll draw the blood. The actual time of the blood draw is about seven to ten minutes. It's not super long, so you don't have to be there too long. After it's completed, they'll clean you all up, they'll wrap you up and send you to get snacks and drinks. Um, make sure you're feeling good, and then you're on your way. It takes about an hour.
SPEAKER_02Oh no, I was gonna go in to talk about farmers market and you guys think there, what that is gonna look like the dates to share all of that information.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so we're gonna come to the farmers market here in Danville on June 13th and August 8th. Um, we're gonna bring our blood mobile. Um, so it's typically a big pink bus. You'll see us, we'll be there. Um, and it's the same process like you would donate anywhere else, you're just on a bus. We make it easy and accessible for our donors.
SPEAKER_03Sure. We're excited about that. They can register online for that, correct? Um, we have it on our farmers market page, we have an event set up. Um, and then also, I mean, we can direct people to that as well. Um, we'll put it in the link in the comments for this podcast as well. So I'm excited about that. Um, how many people do we need for um for that day? Like how many spots are open for that?
SPEAKER_00We've set a unit goal around 13, but that doesn't mean we can't blow that out of the water. Um, we like to see about 20 to 25 donors would be a great goal for our farmers' markets. That'll help us close the gaps, especially in these summer months when we're not seeing as many units coming in because people are on vacation, school's not in session, we're a little busier, but we're also using more blood. So we think more accidents or get a little wild, a little crazy in the summer. We try new things, maybe we shouldn't. Um, so sometimes our blood usage goes up as well. So we have a goal, but it doesn't mean that we can't go above and beyond. So, can you explain?
SPEAKER_03I'm curious, like, what are the platelets? And do you mind explaining a little bit more about that?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I'll take that one. I think it's interesting because uh Hannah kind of alluded to this earlier. What they use those components for is different for each patient, right? And so what the doctor orders for the transfusion is dependent upon what condition that patient might have. And so it could be cancer, like a leukemia patient. Um, it could be uh a burn patient who needs plasma. We talked about plasma, so it could be someone who's suffering from some severe burns, uh, it helps them. Um, and then of course trauma, we talked about that. And uh, and one that's near to my heart is we talk about maternal hemorrhage, right? And so pregnant mothers giving birth often uh might need to uh uh need blood uh blood products as well. And so um, that's why we manufacture those different parts because they they might not need all the different components, they might just need a specific component. And so, for example, like the platelets you asked specifically about, what it does is it helps our blood clot, right? And so if we have significant bleeding, you know, you get you get a cut and you get a little scab, that's your platelets that are kind of coming to the surface right there to help keep heal that, to keep it from uh to prevent it from uh from clotting. And then uh, and then one other reason is uh there could be uh blood diseases such as sickle cell disease, von Wildebrand's disease, or hemophilia. And those patients also uh might need blood uh transfusions regularly. And uh and so we use depending upon what the situation is, uh we might use different blood components for uh each of those different patients.
SPEAKER_03What are some misconceptions that people have about donating?
SPEAKER_00I think there's a lot of fear with donating, um, and I think um understanding that you're not the needle's not in your arm for 60 minutes. So, you know, it's a sh it's not it's not a daunting procedure. Um you don't have to watch the venipuncture. That's your phlebotomist job. Um, they're also there to support you if in the whole entire time. There's always a staff member around, they're well trained, they're very, very knowledgeable in what they do. So we're here to support you with whatever parts of the process might be more difficult.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I always look away. I always look away when I donate, right? And uh and just some other things, you know, like I think Kana mentioned this earlier when you're preparing to donate, like staying well hydrated, eating a good meal, that can help. So somebody might think, well, what if I get lightheaded or I don't feel well? Like she said, the staff are highly trained to manage those. But the best thing to do is to prevent them would be to hydrate well, you know, a 24 hours in advance, eat a solid meal, you know, not just a granola bar, some Pop Tarts, but actually eat, you know, a solid meal before donation that can help as well.
SPEAKER_02So great. Okay, so if someone can't donate blood, how can they support you guys in other ways?
SPEAKER_00I always champion the people who can't donate blood or just don't feel like it's right for them to ask others, people in their place. Um, like we said, there's only three to four percent of the population is donating blood right now. So the more we can ask our neighbors and the more we can support our communities by making it part of our conversation and making lifelong donors and donor friendships is really important. So if you can't donate blood, that doesn't mean you're out. You can host a blood drive, you can invite your friends to this blood drive, you can um be supportive in numerous ways. Gotcha.
SPEAKER_04I I also like social media too, all those things. But I like social media too. And so uh liking our post, like follow us, number one. We have great handles, Facebook, uh, Instagram, etc. Um, follow us and and like our posts. Don't like blue thumbs it, right? Though just like heart it. And uh and then comment, like if you comment on it or uh share it's even better, do all those things and it boosts our uh or boosts our audience a little bit as well. So that's a great way to engage with us as well.
SPEAKER_03We we we understand the social media things.
SPEAKER_02So speaking of social media, where can people find out all of your things, all of your upcoming blood drives, all that stuff?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, on our website, um versity.org, you can go on there and type in your zip code and it'll bring all of the blood drives closest to you and when they are um available to you. And you can just go there and schedule an appointment. So say June 13th doesn't work for you here in Danville with the chamber, we've got other dateable opportunities like at the hospital and whatnot too. So you can find something that suits both your location and your schedule. Schedule an appointment. So you have to have an appointment? No, you don't have an appointment, it just helps us prepare. Okay. Um, we always prepare for walk-ins, but our appointments do get um that first spot. Yes. Um, and and it helps us know if we're gonna blow up and we need more staff, like I want to be able to support a blood drive. So it just helps us prepare.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Great. What's the one thing that you wish people understood about blood donation? What is the one thing that you feel like is most important that people understood or know about blood donation?
SPEAKER_04I'll I'll go first. I'll I'll go first. I'll let Aina think for a second. Um, it you can't manufacture it like uh synthetically, right? It's it can only be um generated by by blood donation, right? And so there's only one way to save those patient lives, and that's by donating blood. And so I think that's probably you know an easy, an easy answer there. I took the easy one.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, you did. It's okay. Um, I think knowing that um how how much we need blood and that blood does expire. So um, like we talked about eligibility earlier, um, and how how often how excuse me, how much time blood can sit on a shelf. Typically it's not on the shelf for 42 days or reserve product. Yeah, it's typically days a week most. Yeah, but eligibility comes every 56 days. So we will always be in a shortage because we will always have that shelf life. And making sure that we have the blood for each other is really important. And if everyone who donated or a first-time donor donated one more time, we could eliminate a lot of the blood shortages that happen, especially around the holidays and summertime. And you had mentioned how often can someone donate? A typical whole blood procedure, which is the most common procedure we do, is every 56 days.
SPEAKER_0356 days. Okay. So that's why we spaced ours out for the farmer's market, so that um someone could donate both of them and not just come to one and donate. So okay.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, we're trying to encourage people to continue um the lifelong donor lifestyle. So making sure you get that first-time donation in, you learn the process, you understand what's going on, and then it becomes part of your routine and part of your lifestyle so that we can hopefully eliminate the blood shortages that happen.
SPEAKER_02Okay, so I don't know if you guys are the people that are like there when people are donating blood, obviously. But do you have any like crazy stories of like someone donating blood that is like, oh my gosh, I can't believe that happened.
SPEAKER_04I don't know, I don't know about crazy stories. Some of my it could be meaningful. Yeah, some of my favorite memories are getting to be there when someone's reached a milestone of blood donation, and so they measure it in gallons, and so usually one yeah, one unit that it takes eight units to get to a gallon, right? And uh some of our platelet donors, so our platelet donors, they can actually donate every um every two weeks. And so they can and because they get their red blood cells back and then they drink lots of water, they can regenerate their platelets, and so they can donate up to 24 times in one year, and we have many loyal platelet donors who donate. And uh, and it's not uncommon to see donors who have given over 100 gallons of blood products. Um my gosh. Yeah, we we see some in the 140, 150 range. Um, some of our whole blood and red cell donors, you know, 30 or 40 gallons is a significant think of all that times eight, times three, right? Because of the number of uh products they are donating, how many lives someone like that's been able to save. So one of my favorite parts, like we usually have the signs like 30 gallons or you know, whatever, and getting to be there and celebrate that. Like uh we try to do fun things for those situations. That's a fun memory.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's very cool. That's fun. We try to celebrate everyone who's involved in every component of it. We have champions who host blood drives in honor of people. We have a memorial blood drives for those who have unfortunately passed. We try to just honor the blood donor and the blood recipients as much as we can, and it's really cool to see people come together and support their communities.
SPEAKER_03What is the best way for someone to reach out to you if they want to host a blood drive?
SPEAKER_00Um, you can reach out to me uh directly by email addresses h daviesdav ies at versity.org, and I'll share that information with you guys so we can put that in the links as well.
SPEAKER_04One other thing I I do think I want to make sure we mention, you know, we talked about the importance of local uh community. So um, number one, I wanted to thank you all for your partnership. It's been tremendous. Um, we couldn't do it without you, and so thank you so much uh for allowing us to do that and uh and being partners together to save those lives in the community. Um, right down the road, Hendrix Regional Hospital, uh Hannah and I were there not too long ago. They had hosted their 100th blood drive. That was pretty cool, and we're their primary blood supplier, and and we're the primary blood supplier of many hospitals uh right here in in uh in Indiana. So we're very excited about that.
SPEAKER_03Now, are you just in central Indiana or are you all over the state?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, we have hospitals all over the state, and so we provide over 90 hospitals in the state of Indiana, and then versity is actually larger than just Indiana. We're also in Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Ohio. And so I kind of call it the Great Lakes region. And uh, but the blood that we collect here are uh we save to make sure that it stays here.
SPEAKER_03So if they went to the website, they could find a place in Ohio in Michigan, because we've got friends in Michigan, we've got friends in Ohio, we've got listeners that are from all over. So I think um that's cool that we can connect you guys all over the all over the Great Lakes region. Yeah, there you go.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00Something to point out too is just because we're the primary blood supplier here, if you're in another state, there's probably a blood supplier that needs your support too. So um we're all for the common good, for the common goal of saving lives. Um so just finding the right place for you, um, whether like here in Indiana or elsewhere, um probably an easy Google search. Where can I donate blood? And I promise you there will be somewhere nearby that will um welcome you.
SPEAKER_03Um I just have one last question. And if someone wanted to help what do they need to do? I mean, what do they need to provide? What do they need, what did they need to do to help?
SPEAKER_00That's a great question. Um, we need a space whether that's somewhere to um have a mobile or we need to have restrooms or a larger conference room, gymnasium, things like that. Um making sure you have somewhere where people can gather. And then we ask for um a participation level of 15 to 25 donors, um some sort of commitment from the interest list, um, something you asked in your group, you know, who's gonna participate so we know how to prepare. And then um we asked our coordinator, whoever's in charge on the community side, um, to work as a liaison, inviting their friends, their families, their peers, their co-workers, and also working with us to make sure we've got all the logistics figured out and whatnot. We can do that with a person or a committee.
SPEAKER_02My final question, which I can encourage you guys for one piece of um like advice, business advice, anything that you want to share with me.
SPEAKER_04All right, I'll I'll go first. Um, it's interesting because we've been, I'm gonna tie this back to blood donation a little bit. It's interesting because we've been talking about why blood donation is important, but what can it do for you, like as a donor? It actually can help with your physical health as well. And so we do the mini-physical screening. And so if there were any abnormalities with blood pressure, pulse, temperature, you know, your hemoglobin, things like that, it could be discovered. And so that's one thing. I uh I always encourage you to be screened with your doctor, but this is another great way. And so I say all that because um for me, I think a very important part is our physical health is so important, right? And for me, like that physical activity leads to positive mental health as well. And I don't think people realize, you know, how important, you know, being physically healthy can also help you mentally uh be prepared for life. And so um taking care of yourself so that you can help take care of others so that we can we can do this every day and come and and thank our donors and and make sure we save lives in our community. So I think kind of tie it all back together a little bit there.
SPEAKER_00I've heard we are Have I guess personal ish advice. Um, advocating for yourself is extremely important and something that I never really understood. I did not start my career path in thinking that I would end up here. Um, I actually accepted my first job university five years ago as a phlebotomist with no kind of plan. And here I am today, and I'm really glad that I have people who will support me in the role, but also encourage me to continue to grow into the roles that I think that I would be best suited for. Um, so advocating for yourself and figuring out what's right for you is really important because it may not be what you pictured 10 years ago. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04How long have you been in your current role?
SPEAKER_00My current role a year, but I've been with her steady for five years.
SPEAKER_04It does it that year has gone by fast. Anna's an absolute rock star, so we know she's in the right spot. So it's been really cool to me because I've known Anna since when she first started and to see her growth. And and I love that advocating for yourself.
SPEAKER_00So today's actually my one year anniversary in this role. Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_03Good thing you got to us comfort.
SPEAKER_01I knew that. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03Well, thank you guys so much for coming on. Um, we truly appreciate it. And we will put all of the information, obviously, on all of our social media as well. Um, was there anything else that we didn't talk about that you want to make sure that we talk about before we close up?
SPEAKER_00No, I think I just reiterate that we can only support our communities within ourselves, and we need to be that partner for the people we don't know and making sure those are lasting relationships and what yeah, and thanking all the donors who do donate, right?
SPEAKER_04And so uh we couldn't do it without them and and then their advocacy and your advocacy um as well as as we continue to grow and make sure we save patient lives. Yeah, thank you.
SPEAKER_02Thanks, yeah, thank you.