Canadian Blood Services issues urgent call for donations
Global News
National inventory for blood is down 25 per cent since the start of April, and hundreds of appointments for blood donation remain open across Atlantic Canada.
It was around 10 years ago that Terry Wagner began donating blood, later giving plasma, and then platelets.
Recently, Wagner received a pin and certificate from the Canadian Blood Services to mark his contributions, but he doesn’t donate for the accolades.
“There was a friend of mine in Halifax that had surgery this past weekend they needed 25 units of blood. If that donor on the other end of that system doesn’t make it happen, it just cascades into a lot of different things,” said Wagner, adding if he one day needs blood, he hopes there will be adequate resources.
Canadian Blood Services is in dire need of more consistent donors like Wagner to replenish inventory.
The national blood supply has drained, down 25 per cent since the start of April. In Atlantic Canada, there are 550 open appointments at donor centres, including 151 in Halifax, 158 in Moncton and 58 in Saint John.
Brandy Peters is the community development manager for Moncton and the eastern New Brunswick region at Canadian Blood Services.
“It’s unsustainable. We cannot rely on the generous donors that do give and give as much as they can to save us for long periods of time,” Peters said of current supply levels.
Previous waves of the COVID-19 pandemic at times slowed the number of donations.