"The situation is now at a crisis level," Oregon Health Sciences University Bone Marrow Transplant Director Dr. Rachel Cook said Tuesday.

"We now had to prioritize our limited supply for those who need it most such as those who are actively bleeding, having chest pain, undergoing emergent surgeries or his blood counts are so low that they're in really dire straits," says Rachel Cook, OHSU Medical Director of Inpatient Bone Marrow Transplant Unit.

During a news conference with regional Red Cross and OHSU leaders Tuesday, they shared the impact in Oregon and Washington.

During a press conference Tuesday morning, spokespeople from the American Red Cross and OHSU urged those who are eligible to donate as the low blood supply poses a danger to patients.

Underscoring the gravity of the situation, Oregon Health & Science University’s bone marrow transplant director joined the call to ask people to come forward and donate blood. “The situation is now at a crisis level,” Dr. Rachel Cook said. Cook implored people to step up.

Rachel Cook, M.D., joins an American Red Cross press conference to emphasize the urgent need for blood donations: “Because blood is so scarce we’re also having to delay some major surgeries. We now have to prioritize our limited supply for those who need it most, such as those who are actively bleeding, having chest pains, undergoing emergent surgeries, or whose blood counts are so low that they’re in really dire straits."

Mark Tanski, M.D., and other local experts urge the public to not seek COVID-19 testing at emergency departments unless they are seriously ill.

Sancy Leachman, M.D., Ph.D., and Suzanne Hidde of the Oregon Department of Education, discuss the importance of a new skin cancer educational campaign for high school students developed at OHSU.

GRAIL, Inc. announces that the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute is offering its cancer early detection test to interested and eligible patients via a pilot program.