Davenport, Iowa, Dec. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The end of the year marks the conclusion of ImpactLife’s 50th Anniversary and a year of celebration for staff members, blood donors, volunteers, and community leaders across the nonprofit blood provider’s four-state service region. ImpactLife registered more than 220,000 donations during its 50th Anniversary year, contributing to a total of more than 5-million units of blood volunteer donors have provided throughout the blood center’s history.

Originally named Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center, ImpactLife was established in 1974 through the merger of the Scott County (Iowa) and Rock Island County (Illinois) blood banks. The organization changed its name to ImpactLife in 2021, reflecting the blood center’s growth beyond the Mississippi River valley. Today, ImpactLife provides blood to more than 120 hospitals and emergency medical service providers located in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, and to researchers and resource sharing partners across the United States.

ImpactLife timeline (.pdf)

Golden Anniversary events held across the blood center’s service region have provided opportunity for staff and donors to reflect on innovation and technological advances that have carried the blood center’s mission forward since its founding. Mike Parejko, President and CEO, shared the following in his remarks on the 50th Anniversary:

Our blood center has always embraced innovation, working at the leading edge of our industry. A few examples of this work include:

• moving from a paper-based donor registration process to an automated computer-based process.
• on-line blood donation scheduling and on-line pre-donation screening for blood donors.
• integrating robotics into the manufacturing operations as well as blood donor testing.
• and recently leading the movement using mixed reality to enhance the blood donation experience.

While I am extremely proud of our history and solid foundation, I am even more excited about our future. As we look forward, we will continue to embrace innovation and change, while never forgetting our foundation. Continuing our important work in the transfusion medicine space, supporting the healthcare continuum, specifically patients with lifesaving blood components at the hospital and with pre- (or out of) hospital transfusion through our growing partnerships with EMS providers. Learn about pre-hospital transfusion

I am also excited about the work we are doing to advance medicine.As an example, our recently announced partnership in the premarket development stages for frontline On Demand plasma (or lyophilized plasma) to be used in the pre-hospital setting making it possible for emergency medical services to deliver a transfusion at the scene of injury. Learn about on-demand plasma

As well as the leading-edge work, we are investing in the cellular therapy space with the goal of not just treating disease states but also hopefully someday preventing and curing diseases. Learn about cellular therapy

The size and scope of our blood center and even our name has changed, but our appreciation for our donors, our sponsor groups, hospital partners, volunteers and especially our ImpactLife team remains as strong as ever.

Within this fast-paced environment of change, the opportunity for blood donors to help patients in need remains the same. “Blood transfusions provided by volunteer donors are used in settings from the emergency room to oncology, obstetrics, general surgery, and more.” said Amanda Hess, Vice President, Donor Relations and Marketing. “We are so grateful to the donors, blood drive coordinators, and other volunteers who support our mission.”

ABOUT IMPACTLIFE

ImpactLife's mission is to save lives by engaging donors, supporting partners, and advancing medicine. Founded in 1974, ImpactLife supplies blood products and services to hundreds of hospitals, emergency services organizations, clinical researchers, and other blood centers throughout Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Missouri. The nonprofit blood provider is ranked among the leading 12 blood suppliers in the United States. For more information on current blood inventory levels, our donor promotions, and more, see www.bloodcenter.org and find us @impactlifeblood on Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

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Attachments

• ImpactLife 50th Anniversary
• ImpactLife 50th Anniversary

Kirby Winn
ImpactLife
(563) 349-1571
kwinn@impactlife.org