By battlefordsNOW

NB blood donor clinic sees steady support

Jan 16, 2019 | 6:14 PM

North Battleford resident Jenelle Johnson appeared cheerful when she sat down to give blood at the mobile clinic at the Don Ross Centre earlier this week.

This is her third time giving blood, and she is glad to be able to make the contribution.

“It saved my younger brother’s life,” she said, adding he received a blood transfusion after being involved in a car crash. 

“I’m doing it for him,” Johnson said.

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Canadian Blood Services spokesperson Mike Fisher said the response for the recent local clinic was “right around the target.”

About 95 individuals each donated one unit at the monthly clinic. Each unit is equal to about 498 ml of blood.

“The need is always constant,” Fisher said. “Blood has a shelf life of 42 days. Some blood products have a shelf life of only seven days, so even if we are good today in a month from now we’ll need more to fill the shelves. 

“As of right now, our inventories are generally pretty good,” he added. “But, it is the winter, and weather can play a factor in things, so it can be a tough couple of months. It’s really important for people to come out and donate.”  

Fisher mentioned Canadian Blood Services has made some changes to its eligibility requirements over the past year. 

Among some of the changes, after having tattoos and piercings, individuals must wait a deferral period of three months currently, instead of six months to donate,  

Fisher said it’s now been deemed through research that three months is a sufficient wait time after an individual has had a tattoo or piercing to be able to give blood.

For cannabis and alcohol consumption, if individuals are sober and show no signs of intoxication, and can give informed consent, then they are eligible to donate blood. Previously, donors had to wait 12 hours after having their last drink.

As well, people are now eligible to donate blood after six months of receiving their last transfusion of blood or blood products, instead of having to wait 12 months based on prior conditions.

angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow