National Volunteer Week (NVW): From April 19–25, 2020, please join us in celebrating our volunteers who do so much for Canada’s Lifeline and the wellbeing of patients. Our volunteers are involved with donors throughout the donation process; they also recruit new donors, raise awareness about the importance of blood, stem cell and organ and tissue donation and help fundraise to support our lifesaving programs. We thank them for their positive impact and for inspiring others to join our volunteer community. Keep an eye out this week in the digest and on our social media channels for some inspiring stories of volunteers who are giving back and helping us save lives. We also encourage you to join the conversation with stories of your own, by using the hashtags #NVW2020 and #CanadasLifeline. 

Returning to work after being ill: If you have recovered from non-COVID-19 related symptoms, or from respiratory virus-like symptoms (diagnosed or not), you may be wondering about the process of returning to work. We have updated the Q&A on the COVID-19 employee portal to help you understand when it is ok to come to work, and who you need to be in contact with to initiate that process.  

Watch out for COVID-19 phishing scams: Cyber actors are exploiting the pandemic to send emails with malicious attachments or links to fraudulent websites to trick victims into revealing sensitive information or installing malware. As with all unsolicited email, please exercise caution in handling any email with a COVID-19-related subject line, attachment, or hyperlink, and be wary of social media pleas, texts, or calls. Canadian Blood Services’ IT security team encourages users to remain vigilant and take the following precautions:  

• Avoid clicking on links in unsolicited email and be wary of email attachments. See the Cybersecurity awareness article on Connect for more information 

• Do not reveal personal or financial information in an email and do not respond to email solicitations for this information. 

• Have questions? Please contact the IT Security team. 

The need goes on — help from a familiar face: Josie’s story serves to remind us that what we do matters. At just two years old she was diagnosed with thalassemia and told she would not live past 20. After over 4.400 units of blood, she is now nearing 50, Josie has a full-time career, volunteer commitments, a husband and three kids. That’s all thanks to the blood system — and one familiar face. In the 1990s, her hematologist was one Dr. Graham Sher. “He was one of the best doctors I’ve ever had” Josie says. “It was very reassuring that he was part of the new blood system when it started in 1998. My only complaint is that patients lost an amazing bedside physician when he left his practice to join Canadian Blood Services.” Read more about Josie’s story on blood.ca.  

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