Give Blood and Help to Save the Lives of Others

CARING MATTERS
Published Thursday July 10th, 2008
Appeared on page B8

Blood - it's in you to give.

I can guess most of you reading this article have heard this expression at some point in the media. Each year, transfusions of blood are required for any number of medical procedures. These include surgery, transplants, auto accidents and gunshot wounds. According to the Canadian Blood Services website, "approximately every minute of every day, someone in Canada needs blood." To put that in perspective, that is 1,440 people a day in Canada in need of blood.

The website also states that, "in a recent poll, 52 per cent of Canadians say they, or a family member, have needed blood or blood products for surgery or for medical treatment." Donating blood is a safe and easy process. Donors are the lifeline of the blood supply system in Canada. Without donors, many lives would be lost due to lack of blood availability.

All donors are screened prior to giving blood, for safety reasons of both parties: "Donor screening procedures are exclusionary - they exclude people who are at risk of diseases transmissible by blood. The criteria that Canadian Blood Services uses to determine the eligibility of blood donors are based on scientific knowledge of risk factors. Screening out people at greater risk of transmitting blood borne infections is necessary to safeguard the people who receive donated blood."

The requirements to become a blood donor are simple. If you are a healthy individual between the ages of 17 and 71 as a regular donor and between 17 and 61 for a first-time donor, you may be eligible to donate. To donate after your 71st birthday, a medical assessment is required to ensure the safety of the donor. Call or check out the website for more information on the process and when and how to donate. In addition to blood donations, Canadian Blood Services maintains a registry of potential bone marrow donors. Bone marrow is the tissue found in the soft centre of your bones. It creates red blood cells (which carry oxygen), white blood cells (which fight infection) and platelets (which help to stop bleeding).

Many diseases require bone marrow transplants, including leukemia, aplastic anemia and immune system diseases. There are currently 6.5-million potential bone marrow donors in the international registry - 210,000 of which are Canadian. Each year, more than 100 Canadians receive bone marrow transplants through Canadian Blood Services, which has access to over 50 international registries.

Canadian Blood Services is responsible for recruiting blood and bone marrow donors, as well as collecting blood, plasma and platelets at 41 permanent collection sites and more than 19,000 donor clinics annually. Yet, each year, the demand for blood often exceeds the availability. So, as you sit on your front porch or at your cottage this week, leisurely reading this paper, give a thought to those in your network of family and friends who may have been the recipients of a transfusion. Remember those who gave them the "gift of life."

If you can't think of anyone in your network, think of how much some family will thank you for giving their loved one the gift of life. At the Fredericton Community Foundation, we promote giving and encourage donations of a financial nature on a regular basis.

Today, I am encouraging you to "give and donate" a gift that can change a life forever.

Call 1-888-2-DONATE (1-888-236-6283). Have a safe and enjoyable summer.

Cindy Sheppard is the executive director of the Fredericton Community Foundation. Her column profiling non-profit agencies appears every second Thursday. Please send comments to letters@dailygleaner.com.