Nearly 100 Pima Medical students gathered at the Vitalant Tempe Headquarters recently for the blood donation center’s 16th Annual Volkswagen Grand Prize Ceremony. Several blood donors and blood drive coordinators picked a key “Deal or no Deal” style and one winner walked away with a brand new vehicle, donated by the Valley Volkswagen dealers.
Pima Medical students learn of career opportunities available at Vitalant.
After the official event ended, Vitalant provided tours for Pima Medical students to see firsthand, the inner workings of a blood donation, component processing and distribution center. Included in the tour was a chance to learn about career opportunities. The many Pima Medical students represented the Patient Care Technician, Medical Assistant, Phlebotomy and Veterinary Assistant programs offered at the East Valley campus. For each student, it was more than a field trip. This day was an opportunity to see all the hard work that goes into fulfilling blood transfusion needs for patients in 75 hospitals throughout Arizona and Southern Nevada.
Pima Medical prides itself on being active community stewards and understands the importance of helping to teach qualified healthcare professionals and the impact they have on the communities they serve.
“We host several blood drives at our East Valley and other campus locations throughout the year,” said Sandy Caldwell, East Valley Campus Director. “We know the importance of blood donation, especially in this critical time and we were thrilled to be asked to support this event and provide our students an opportunity to see for themselves how a blood donation center works.”
Inside the blood donor center, several Pima Medical students took time to donate blood themselves. One Veterinary Assistant student who donated said, “It’s a small sacrifice to be able to potentially save someone’s life. I’m happy I could donate today.”
Dedication to the communities they serve is what makes the partnership between Vitalant and Pima Medical so successful.
“Our community partnerships are a vital aspect of our mission, and we are grateful for partners like Pima Medical,” said Sue Thew, Arizona Communications Manager, Vitalant. “We were happy they could provide so many students to join us for this exciting event and we were happy to give them an opportunity to tour our facility as well.”
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