Travis provides blood line to Pacific

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Charles Rivezzo
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Representing just one of two blood processing laboratories in the Department of Defense, the Armed Services Whole Blood Processing Laboratory West on Travis Air Force Base, serves as the blood line to the entire Pacific Command.

Unlike their well-known sister lab at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, who provides blood products for coalition forces in the Central Command region, the West lab has quietly functioned as the DoD's western hub of blood processing, handling and shipping.

"Our tri-service facility supports the entire Pacific region," said Army Staff Sgt. David Ho, ASWBPL-West NCO in charge. "We supply Navy ships in the Pacific theater, the embassies and all the medical facilities in the region with blood products."

The center is manned by Airmen, Sailors, Soldiers and civilians, and has been a joint operation since the DoD created the mission for the Armed Services Blood Program in 1966.

Over the course of nearly five decades since the program's inception, blood handling practices have advanced considerably from previous years when products were stored in jars and lab technicians were not subject to stringent regulatory inspections by the Food and Drug Administration, American Association of Blood Banks, College of American Pathologists and the Air Force Inspector General.

Today, the men and women who serve at these facilities are on the forefront of cutting-edge technological advancements within their respective field. Advancements such as the streamlined process of blood transportation and their unique ability to freeze blood units, which increase their shelf life from 42 days to 10 years, are initiatives these service members pride themselves on.

For the West facility, blood is donated at three major Air Force, Army and Navy donor centers prior to its arrival for processing and ultimately shipment to their final destinations.

The process begins with the blood arriving to the lab from the individual donor centers about three days after donation via an overnight delivery truck. The blood is then scanned and tested to ensure it's properly labeled and stored at adequate temperatures.

"Typically, we send about 50 units of blood every two weeks for standard resupply purposes," Ho said. "But once everything is properly stored and inventoried, it is essentially ready to be shipped anywhere throughout the Pacific theater upon request."

In addition to the labs primary mission of blood processing, ASWBPL-West lab technicians execute the critical mission of training service members throughout PACCOM on how to properly process the blood once it has been received.

"One of our more critical missions in the Pacific region is maintaining the various contingency frozen blood supply centers located in theater," said Army Sgt. Jered Whicker, ASWBPL-West laboratory technician. "In early January, we sent two instructors to Yokota and Osan Air Base to instruct the Airmen on how to thaw out the contingency blood. By sending just two instructors to these locations instead of having the trainees sent to us, we were able to save the Air Force roughly $100,000."

Although they may never know the names and faces of each service member or civilian life their work saves, the joint staff is aware of the importance of their work.

"We are the last place these blood units go before leaving the United States," Whicker said. "We understand that serving as a major hub for such a life-saving product comes with very high standards ... anything less than perfection in blood testing puts lives at risk."