Essentia Health Hosts Bone Marrow Registry Drive

DULUTH, Minn.– Essentia Health hosted a different type of match-making event today. One that could possibly save lives.

And for the Essentia Health family, it’s personal. Nurse Kristine Hautamaki was recently diagnosed with leukemia. She is not able to work at the hospital right now. But her co-workers aren’t forgetting her by organizing this drive in hopes of finding a match.

“I’ve worked here for so many years. So, I’ve always loved Essentia and being a part of this community. And seeing the out pour of love.” said Hautamaki.

Kristi posing with the swab counter.

The staff focused on swabbing as many cheeks as possible in one day. To not only try to find a match for Kristine, but anybody else hoping to find that perfect donor.

“It’s very overwhelming and emotional to me. I am so grateful for the community that I have and all the support.” said Hautamaki

Despite the mission of this drive being aimed towards Kristine, there are a lot of other people out there looking for matches as well.

“One thing I try and push with this thing is everybody does have a match. We just need to find it.” said Oncology Nurse Melissa Rock

And the process is easy. Fill out a quick survey and swab both cheeks all in under five minutes. Rock says there’s a desperate need for donors. And she knows this all too well.

“Personally, I had a transplant, a stem cell transplant 16 years ago.” explained Rock, “And without somebody, an unrelated donor being on that list, I probably wouldn’t be here still. So, I really want to make sure to offer this to patients who really need it.”

It’s a simple procedure and a little bit of one’s time out of their day, that could be a lifesaver for others.

Kristi and her son Henry.

“If they do identify you as a donor, all it is, is a blood draw. And they remove your stem cells. And it’s pretty painless. And everyone who does it, loves doing it. They always say the best things because they literally saved a life. And they will eventually get to meet the person they saved.” said Hautamaki.

The drive received quite a turn out. After the six-hour event, Essentia Health received 144 cheek swab samples!