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Commissioners accept $45,000 Cannon Foundation grant to pilot prehospital blood program
Summary
Cabarrus County EMS received and accepted $45,000 from the Cannon Foundation to fund coolers and equipment for a pilot program to carry blood in ambulances for traumatic patients; board approved a budget amendment to place the funds in tools and minor equipment.
Cabarrus County commissioners on Wednesday accepted a $45,000 grant from the Cannon Foundation to fund a pilot program enabling paramedics to carry blood products for trauma patients in the prehospital setting.
Cabarrus County EMS Chief presented the request and said the practice has been used in the military for years and is growing in North Carolina; he said roughly 13 or 14 counties now use prehospital blood. The program requires cooperation with local hospitals and blood banks; the chief said Atrium Cabarrus Hospital and its blood bank have agreed to support logistics.
The grant, which the EMS director said the Cannon Foundation expedited onto its June agenda, covers equipment such as temperature-monitored storage coolers (roughly $22,000 each) and related supplies. The department requested placement of the $45,000 in its tools and minor equipment line so it can spend the funds. The board approved the budget amendment without objection.
Commissioners noted the timing aligns with the county's "Battle of the Badges" blood drive and encouraged public donations. The board recorded a unanimous vote to accept the grant and appropriate the funds.
