Hurley’s Media Ltd. and Car City in partnership with the Health Services Authority (HSA) and Cayman Islands Blood Bank presented Cayman’s first dedicated blood bank van on Wednesday, 7 August. The van will improve safety and ease the transport of essential equipment and materials for mobile blood drives.

“Having a vehicle that is readily available and used exclusively to facilitate the collection of blood is a major milestone for the Blood Bank. As requests for mobile blood drives increase, this contribution will make a significant difference in how efficiently the blood drive process flows,” said Blood Bank Manager Judith Clarke.

Over the years, with the increase of medical operations performed locally, such as cardiac surgeries, there is a greater demand for blood. The Cayman Islands Blood Bank will utilize the van for all mobile blood drives. Each of the van’s corporate sponsors will host a public blood drive over the next 12 months in hopes of increasing the current donor pool from 2.5% to 5% of the population to meet the growing needs of Cayman.

Members of the public will be able to track the van’s blood drive related activities on the Cayman Islands Blood Bank’s website (www.bloodbank.ky) through a feature that will indicate when the van is being used for a blood drive and pinpoint its exact location. This gives members of the community an opportunity to drop by blood drives open to the public and donate on the spot.

“We are grateful to all the sponsors for making a difference in our community by playing their part in saving lives,” said Ms. Clarke. “Community efforts such as that displayed by Hurley’s Media and Car City are crucial to achieving and maintaining an adequate level of blood on the island at any given time. We are fortunate to have such tremendous support.”

The Blood Bank van is the second initiative from Hurley’s Media and Car City, after hosting Cayman’s first ever mobile blood drive at Car City in March last year which resulted in widespread interest from other companies on island.

Corporate sponsors of the van include CIBC First Caribbean, Cayman First Insurance, Island Heritage, SALT Technology Group and Elite Marble & Granite. Community sponsors are BAF Insurance Company and Health Care Pharmacy.

“I would like to thank everyone involved, especially the staff at the Blood Bank. Without their hard work, none of this would be possible,” said Car City Sales Manager Taylor Foster. “It is truly amazing what we can do, the problems we can solve and goals we can accomplish when we all work together as a community. This is an ongoing partnership and together, with this new van, we can make a big difference.”

“We are extremely proud of the support we have received for this project from everyone involved. Cayman has always come together when it comes to helping the community. The generosity of the sponsors for this project, the team at Car City, and all those working behind the scenes are perfect examples of that sense of community,” said Eric Vincent, Sales Representative at Hurley’s Media. “We are looking forward to continuing to raise awareness for the Blood Bank and working with them for years to come.”

To register to be a blood donor, determine your eligibility or book an appointment visit www.bloodbank.ky  or walk-in to the Cayman Islands Blood Bank located at the Cayman Islands Hospital (2^nd floor). Opening hours are Monday – Friday 7am – 6:30pm and Saturday 9am – 5pm. Thank you to our website partner and ongoing supporter, Generali for your generous support for the Blood Bank.