New technology delays Red Cross Drive for hours

Home News New technology delays Red Cross Drive for hours
New technology delays Red Cross Drive for hours
The Red Cross is here on Hillsdale Campus until further notice. As students line the hallway in the Student Union outside the blood drive waiting to donate blood, some do homework, some chat, some sit and stare. They have been waiting for hours.
The delay is caused by recent changes made by the Red Cross, Head Nurse Valerie Hunt said.

“We are on a learning curve right now,” she said. “We have new equipment, new software, and new processes. We have slowed down a little bit to not make critical mistakes.”

The new system is called BioArch, Hunt said, and it is designed to increase efficiency. The next time
will go faster than before.
This is Hunt’s second time coming to Hillsdale College with the Red Cross blood drive, and she was enthusiastic about the event and expressed gratitude for the turnout among the students.
“We want to thank all the students for their participation,” Hunt said.
Freshman Katie Annett and sophomore Ariel Torres have been waiting to donate blood for two hours. They have entertained themselves with homework, drawing, singing, and even reading the information booklet with various accents.
The wait has not dampened the spirits of Torres.
“I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time,” she said, smiling.
Meanwhile, sophomores Josh Johnson and Harris Wells said they have been waiting for almost four hours.  Senior Tim Jagielski has been waiting nearly five. To pass the time?
“Homework.”

Sophomore Collegian copy-editor Abigail Wood, who had already given blood, offered her thoughts as she lay in recovery.

“They’re working very hard and I appreciate it…they are learning their new technology and filing new students,” she said. “I was not bothered.”
Sophomore Josiah Kollmeyer did not have to wait long because he set up an appointment ahead of time.
“This is a way to give of yourself,” he said.