Blood Bank Gets Grant To Build Supply Of Rare Blood Types

The LifeStream blood bank today was given a $250,000 grant by the Desert Healthcare District to help the blood bank build up a supply of rare blood types, officials said.

The donation will provide financial backing to support a program that uses advanced DNA testing to identify rare-blood donors.

LifeStream blood bank serves Riverside and San Bernardino counties, but is in need of rare blood-group types to serve non-Anglo racial and ethic groups, Desert Healthcare District spokesman Tim O’Bayley said.

“Desert Healthcare District has a large Hispanic population and small populations of African American and Native Americans,” said Sid Rubenstein, the district’s program committee chair. “These groups and other individuals receive treatments that might require blood transfusions at the three hospitals in the Valley. We realize that the capacity to meet this need for rare blood must be developed.”