It's a familiar refrain: The summer get-away holidays are here, and Community Blood Center needs donors. We all wish this weren't the case, but life happens.

On the one hand, we wish that there were no need for gifts of blood to be kept on hand, awaiting the next victim of a traffic accident or the next candidate for invasive surgery.

On the other, we understand accidents and health crises do happen, but we wish donors were plentiful and always ready to make their next donation just as the need occurs.

As the kind souls at the blood center surely would remind us, this is Northwest Missouri - not Disneyland. People get hurt and sick, and there never are enough regular blood donors.

A study released last summer by University of Minnesota researchers Jeffrey McCullough, M.D., William Riley, Ph.D., and colleagues brought home the importance of blood donors to a community. WebMD reported that their research determined that just 38 percent of the U.S. population is eligible to give blood - down dramatically from previous estimates. Their findings mean that approximately 111 million adults can give blood, compared to a presumed 177 million before.

The researchers noted 31 factors either can make a person's blood unsafe, or make donating it unsafe. They cited as examples: recent tattoos, HIV infection or heart disease. Previous studies did not account for all of these exclusions.

Knowing what they know now, blood-collection centers nationwide can take some satisfaction in realizing that they are getting close to 129 units of blood from every 1,000 eligible donors in a community. That compares with 81 units under previous estimates.

But the flip side is that the centers have more or less maxed out their tried-and-true ways of recruiting donors. They need new ways of encouraging donations, or else we are in for real trouble over the next several years as the population ages and blood needs increase.

Two approaches are called for:

First, reliable donors need to consider giving more frequently. On average, a donor gives 1.7 times a year. Increasing this to two donations a year "would be a major step forward," Richard Benjamin, M.D., with the American Red Cross, told WebMD.

Second, prospective donors need to find out for sure whether they can or cannot give. The best way is to come to the blood center or a blood drive and offer yourself as a donor. The intake specialists will determine your eligibility following blood-safety guidelines.

There is no better time to act than now. Community Blood Center reports supplies of all types of blood are low heading into the summer. To donate, go by the center at 3122 Frederick Ave. from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fridays; or 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays. The phone number is 232-6791.