The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) will conduct its 9th Annual Blood Drive and Bone Marrow Registry at the 2018 Annual Meeting & Exposition (APhA2018) in Nashville March 16-19, 2018.

A stable blood supply is vital to the health of any community and in an effort to give back to the local community, APhA is partnering with the American Red Cross on this year’s blood drive in Nashville.  Blood donors play an integral role in the delivery of modern healthcare. Many life-saving medical treatments and procedures involve blood transfusions and would not be possible without a safe and reliable blood supply. The community-based organization works closely with businesses, community groups, and non-profit organizations to schedule “on-site” mobile blood drives, empowering ordinary people to perform extraordinary acts of service.

APhA is also proud to partner with Be The Match Registry, which offers good Samaritans the unique opportunity to give a life-saving bone marrow transplant to someone in need. Thousands of patients with leukemia and other life-threatening diseases depend on Be The Match, the largest and most diverse registry in the world, to find a life-saving donor. For 70% of these patients who don't have a matching donor in their family, finding an unrelated match on the registry is their only chance at a life-saving cure.

 “Community service has always been an important component of our annual meeting and we are happy to carry on the tradition in Nashville! Thirty-eight units were collected and 54 new potential bone marrow donors were registered at last year’s blood drive and bone marrow registry,” said Todd McDonald, APhA Director, Meeting Services. “We’re hoping to surpass those numbers this year!”

The Blood Drive and Bone Marrow Registry is geared towards annual meeting attendees but is also open to the public! Please consider making a donation and giving the gift of life!