Blood donations sought ahead of long weekend
Canadian Blood Services is putting out a call for 200 more donors at its clinics in Brantford over the Labour Day long weekend to help buttress supplies and meet the needs of hospital patients through the last long weekend of the summer.
They are being asked to book an appointment to donate at three upcoming clinics.
“The Brantford clinics this summer have really been struggling to meet their targets,” Lisa Syms, CBS community development co-ordinator, said in an interview Wednesday.
“We've seen fewer donors donating and the approaching long weekend is an added concern.”
Canadian Blood Services are also asking donors who have made commitments to honour them. Currently, only about 60% do that, said Syms.
Every minute of every day, someone in Canada needs blood, said Syms.
“Most often, it takes more than one donor to save a hospital patient's life. A single car accident victim may require 50 units of blood and blood products to survive injuries.”
That's why this long weekend, communities, groups and families across the country are encouraged to rally together to donate blood, said Syms.
The Brantford donor clinics are on:
– Thursday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Brantford and District Civic Centre on Market Street South.
– Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Resurrection Community Centre at 17 Ravenwood Rd.
– Tuesday, Sept. 4, from 1:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Boys and Girls Club of Brantford at 2 Edge St.
Thursday's clinic is supported by City of Brantford employees. The city is a Partner for Life with Canadian Blood Services.
The message to donors, Syms said, is “together you can improve or save the life of a hospital patient. Together, you can help someone in your community recover from life-threatening accident or illness.”
Canadian Blood Services is a national, not-for-profit charitable organization that manages the supply of blood and blood products in all provinces and territories outside Quebec. The provincial and territorial health ministries provide operational funding to CBS, while the federal government, through Health Canada, is responsible for regulating the blood system.
According to statistics, here's how many blood donors on average are needed in the treatment of various victims:
- Car accident victim – up to 50 donors;
- Leukemia patient – up to eight donors a week for several weeks;
- A patient with internal bleeding – two to eight donors;
- Aplastic anemia patient – up to four donor a month;
- Bone marrow transplant patient – up to two donors a day;
- Brain surgery patient – up to two donors;
- Hip replacement patient – up to two donors.