Our leadership has spent a lot of time digging deeply with experts in public health and the medical community about the use of masks in our facilities. We continue to evolve our approach, along with the rest of the world, around the appropriate use of masks in community settings. Governments and public health authorities have begun to suggest that we should all be wearing masks when we leave our homes, signaling a shift in community norms.  

Over the past couple of weeks, we have examined every dimension of this issue, and a decision has been made to evolve our current position on masks. Here is where we are headed: 

• Collections events: We are moving to make masks mandatory for everyone — including employees, volunteers, donors and contractors.  

• Non-collections environments: We are moving to make masks mandatory for individuals who cannot maintain two-metre physical distancing as part of their job requirements.  

The implementation of these measures, including start-date and availability of mask supply will be discussed this week by the steering committee.  We will communicate more details of the roll-out next week once they are available. 

Your feedback and reactions to this announcement are very important to the implementation planning. We encourage you to send your questions and comments to communications@blood.ca with the subject line “MASKS”. We will be updating our PPE page next week to capture your comments and provide answers. You are also encouraged to ask your questions during the live Q&A with our CEO on Tuesday.  

It is important for you to know that this decision was made with an abundance of caution. The safety of all employees, volunteers, donors and contractors is our priority. We look forward to receiving your questions and providing you with more details next week.  

Reminder — Live Q&A with our CEO on Tuesday: Please join us Tuesday, April 28 at 1 p.m. ET for a live Q&A with our CEO.  For details on how to participate, please see the Outlook invite you received earlier today and check-out our attendee help guide. Thanks to your valuable feedback, we are testing new technology to improve the quality and experience. We will be using Microsoft Teams Live Events which allows for live video, better functionality to ask questions and does not limit the number of participants. We look forward to seeing you all there! 

Convalescent plasma collection starts next week: We are proud to share that Canada’s first potential convalescent plasma donors are being screened now. Collections will start at our Vancouver donor centre this Wednesday (April 29), and the program will grow over the next few weeks, as needed, to include other donor centres across the country where we have the capability to collect by apheresis. A team with representatives from our Vancouver-based Blood4Research facility, plasma operations and integrated supply chain planning will work with the donor centres to ensure that we are able to recruit and book donors to supply convalescent plasma while still meeting patient’s needs for blood and blood products. For more information visit our dedicated page on the COVID-19 employee portal.  

The need goes on — cancelled Olympics give athlete chance to give blood: Evan’s story serves to remind us that what we do matters. The pandemic provided a rare opportunity for the racewalker to donate blood for the first time. “In my line of work, I have to be somewhat selfish about my blood,” says the Olympic athlete. “Endurance athletes work to increase blood volume, so we can cover long distances. For once, I had the chance to do this”. Read more about Evan’s story on blood.ca. 

Celebrating our employee volunteers: We want to take a moment to recognize and sincerely thank the Canadian Blood Service employees who have been volunteering with our essential staff on the frontlines. Your contributions during the pandemic continue to help get lifesaving blood products to patients. Before you head into the weekend, please take a moment to check out some our highlights from #NVW2020. 

About the daily digest   

This daily digest will highlight the latest policy and employee support measures, resources to help you manage our new reality and original content like articles and videos to remind us that what we do matters.  Things are moving quickly, so you can expect to hear from us daily. No access to email? No problem — all this information and more can be found on blood.ca/employees from any device, no login required.     

Click here to read past editions of the daily digest.     

Have questions? Check out blood.ca/employees or email us at communications@blood.ca