Your digest

August 31, 2021

We want to make it easy for employees to access the latest from Canadian Blood Services.  Every Tuesday and Friday, we will be bringing you important COVID-19 updates along with valuable information and inspiring stories about other parts of our operations.

We know things are rapidly changing; please remember you can always reach out to communications@blood.ca with your questions and suggestions on how we can better help employees.

Here is the latest.

See past digests

Safeguarding our O-negative inventory

O-negative blood is always in high demand. It is the only blood type that is compatible with all other types and is used in emergency situations when there is no time to confirm the blood type of the patient. Only seven per cent of Canadians share the O-negative blood type — so this group is small yet makes a huge impact!

As we increase the amount of plasma we collect in Canada, we are learning how to balance the growing need for plasma and the constant high demand for O-negative blood. Kelowna is home to a new plasma donor centre that opened in June 2021, and now, a pilot project is underway to continue collecting whole blood from O-negative donors in the community. Our first-ever dedicated O-negative collection event took place on June 5 in Kelowna. Read more here.

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

Revisit these inspiring stories on how blood transfusions and stem cell transplants have made a difference for children who have faced cancer:

Take advantage of our employee discounts during the final weeks of summer: If you’re looking for some inspiration for how to spend your free time during the final weeks of summer, check out our employee discounts for rentals, entertainment, food and restaurants, attractions and more.

Question of the day: Regarding the new vaccination policy, will employees working from home need to report their status or be required to be vaccinated? 

Yes. All employees working from home will need to report their vaccination status and will need to be vaccinated to come on-site to protect the safety of those on-site. 

If you require more information on the vaccine policy, please refer to our vaccine page on the employee portal.

We are moving towards a fully vaccinated workplace by late fall.

 

 

 

About your digest

This digest highlights 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.  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 your digest. 

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