Seven years ago, donated blood saved Meghan Jolliffe’s life. A lot of donated blood.
She was in labor at Overland Park Regional Medical Center when she suffered a rare and extremely dangerous pregnancy complication called an amniotic fluid embolism. It caused a “cardiac arrest, severe hypoxia and uncontrolled bleeding,” Jolliffe said.
“What should have been one of the happiest days turned into a day that I don’t remember, and many can’t forget,” she said.
Her son was delivered via emergency C-section while another doctor performed CPR. It took 14 minutes for her heart to start beating again on its own, and a massive transfusion protocol was initiated to combat blood-clotting issues stemming from the complication.
In all, she received 109 units of blood, which Jolliffe said was “enough to replace my total blood volume 12 times.”
“Nine days passed as I battled for my life, my son waiting patiently to meet me and for us to add a name to his birth certificate,” she said. “Now we have a new rule in our house: When you come back from the dead, you get to name the baby.”
“Because of blood donations, I’m still here”
Eventually, Jolliffe named her son Sullivan, and she later learned that the two of them had a 5% chance of surviving the amniotic fluid embolism.
“A great medical team and science took us as far as it could, but it was blood, the selfless gift of strangers, that did the rest,” she said. “Because of blood donations, I’m still here. I’m alive. I’m a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister and a friend.”
Jolliffe recounted her story of how blood donation had saved her life during a ceremony celebrating the official grand opening of the first American Red Cross fixed donation center in the Kansas City area.
“As we open the doors of the first Red Cross blood donation center in Kansas City, we do more than celebrate a building; we celebrate life and all the ripples that come with it,” she said. “You may never meet the people whose lives you’ve saved, you may never hear our names or see our faces, but know this: we are everywhere.”
The new facility, located at 6301 W. 135th St. on the edge of Overland Park’s Corbin Park retail district, opened recently. It accepts appointments for whole blood and blood product — such as platelets — donations. It opens its doors in an era where blood banks have recently had to scramble to get donors amid shortages across the U.S.
Red Cross picked Overland Park for strategic location
JoAnn Woody, executive director of the Greater Kansas City and Northwest Missouri Chapter of the American Red Cross, said her team was intentional when planning its first permanent donation center.
“Every unit of blood,” she said, “every unit of platelets, saves a life. And so we want to celebrate, and this building is providing us with that opportunity to celebrate that precious gift of time.”
In the region, blood donated to the American Red Cross comes from organized drives or pop-up events. Now, with a fixed location, the Red Cross can have more reliable and regular opportunities to receive blood on top of those other efforts.
Additionally, where it would go was also important. Woody said the Overland Park area is home to “the largest percentage of our regular blood donors” in the region.
“We picked Overland Park; it was very deliberate,” Woody said. “We’re so excited to be able to serve the community and to be a part of the Overland Park community in such a deep and rich way.”
How you can donate blood to the American Red Cross:
The Overland Park donation center is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Fridays and Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. You can make an appointment online here or by calling 1-800-RED CROSS. Walk-ins are not accepted.
Additionally, the new fixed donation center can also host sponsored blood donation events for workplaces or community groups that would like to give blood together but do not have the space independently to do so.
“The need for blood is constant, so let’s keep going. Let’s save more lives. Let’s make blood donation not just a good deed, but a normal part of life, a habit, a tradition, a constant miracle,” Jolliffe said.
Keep reading: A Johnson County woman created a blood drive before she died. It’s needed now more than ever
