Your digest

Join us today for the next townhall: Join us live today at 1 p.m. ET for a townhall with our CEO. Graham will be joined by Dr. Chantale Pambrun, co-acting vice-president of medical affairs and innovation and director of medical services and hospital relations to help answer your questions around COVID-19 vaccines, variants and more. To send a question in advance, please email us at communications@blood.ca with the subject line “TOWNHALL.” To participate, click the Teams meeting link in your Outlook invite. We look forward to continuing these important discussions with you.

Coagulation — exploring the mysteries of ‘a beautiful system’: Did you know that every second, your blood vessels are being damaged? And every second, they are being repaired? Repair happens through the fascinating process of blood clotting, or coagulation. “It’s a beautiful system that Mother Nature has created for us, but it’s a carefully balanced system. If the scale tips even a little bit, bad things happen,” says Dr. Ed Pryzdial, scientist at our Centre for Innovation, who researches coagulation at the University of British Columbia. Sometimes, a virus can also affect coagulation, and Dr. Pryzdial has been investigating that relationship for more than two decades. His group is currently working toward understanding how viruses ― including the one that causes COVID-19 ― trigger clotting.  Learn more about Dr. Pryzdial’s research on blood.ca/stories.

The benefits of international collaboration with the Alliance of Blood Operators: The Alliance of Blood Operators (ABO) is a network of more than 100 blood operators from North America, Europe and Australia, including Canadian Blood Services. Sheila Ward, director, international collaboration and assistant corporate secretary, sat down with Dr. Chantale Pambrun, director of the Centre for Innovation, to hear her thoughts about the value of collaborating with ABO, for both the centre, our organization as a whole and ultimately for the benefit of patients. “The ABO network helps all members operate efficiently and achieve results they can be proud to show their funders,” says Dr. Pambrun. “We are putting blood on the shelf, but also ensuring that products are used in the best possible way to have the maximum impact on patients, thanks to the collaboration between blood operators. Learn more on Connect.

‘We need to do more’: Twelve years ago, Élodie Guitteaud left her home in France and came to Canada in search of a better life. The economic crisis in France at the time was a factor — but racism was another. “Although I knew that racism also existed in Canada, France’s history with racism against Black people was more personal to me because they enslaved my ancestors,” says Élodie. She’s happy that Canada increasingly recognizes the contributions of Black people, especially during Black History Month. She’s also happy that Canadian Blood Services marks this annual celebration of Black history and heritage. In her eight years with the organization, she says she’s never seen the kind of change that she’s witnessing today. “But it’s not enough to address racism without delving into things like respect, equal opportunities, and access to decision-making roles. So, we still need to do more.” Read more on blood.ca/stories.

Winter Wellness Challenge — small acts of kindness: Sharing acts of kindness is one the most impactful actions we can take. For week two of the Winter Wellness Challenge, participants are tasked to be kind to themselves and others, and take part in Pink Shirt Day on Feb. 24, to earn extra points and the chance to win Canadian Blood Services swag. We checked in with wellness champion, Fatima Daniel-Parent, a senior medical laboratory technologist in Winnipeg to see how she and her Winter Wellness Challenge team, “The Office”, are making small changes in the hopes of making a big difference. “I’ve been participating in these challenges since they started,” says Fatima. “By the end of the contest, we all feel so much better. We post pictures of us doing the challenges on Yammer. It’s fun! Good things are happening. We just have to notice them.” Read more on Connect.

Question of the day: It has been almost a year since employees working in an administrative capacity were asked to work from home. Are there any updates to share on phase two of return to office? Will those who wish to return, be able to soon?

Given the unpredictability of the pandemic and the emergence of new variants, there are no plans to resume planning for additional office employees to return to the office at this time in any province.

Public health guidance indicates that employees who can work from home should do so and employees in our ‘wants-to-return’ category should continue to work remotely.

We are continually assessing the changing COVID-19 environment, monitoring public health guidance and government orders, and following the advice from the COVID-19 extended working group, specifically surveillance and medical issues and legal services.

We appreciate your patience and adaptability. We will keep employees informed of any new developments.

For more information on the return to office, visit our dedicated page on your COVID-19 employee portal.

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About your digest

This 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.  No access to email? No problem — all this information and more can be found on blood.ca/employees from any device, no login required.    

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