Daily COVID-19 digest

Voluntary Blood Donations Repeal Act in Alberta  

Yesterday, a private member’s bill was introduced in the Alberta legislature to withdraw the Voluntary Blood Donations Act in that province. The Voluntary Blood Donations Act was adopted in 2017 in Alberta and banned payment to donors and advertising for paid donations. Ontario, BC and Quebec have similar laws preventing paid donations.  

We are reviewing this matter and have expressed concern with the Alberta health minister and ministry regarding any legislative changes that could impact the national blood system before a broader conversation has been had with all ministers of health in Canada. We want to reach consensus on what is essentially a paradigm shift to national blood system principles and operations. We need to better understand the implications and agree, as a country, on how we should or could approach commercial, for-profit plasma collections in Canada, to ensure no unintended consequences.  

We do expect to be further consulted on this bill. We will update staff regularly on developments around this matter. If you have any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to send them to communications@blood.ca. We will also have opportunities to talk about this further during our live Q&A events.

Looks like you could use a vacation: Heard that one lately? For many, travel and physical distancing restrictions have led to the cancellation of planned holidays and a reluctance to take vacation days. However, the stress of the pandemic, coupled with juggling work and personal commitments means taking a break for your overall wellbeing is more important than ever. We’ve teamed up with travel writer Bianca Bujan to share some local getaway ideas to help you plan a safe, stress-free vacation that is closer to home this summer. Over the next six weeks, we will be bringing you staycation ideas for families, couples or travelling solo across Canada. Our first stop? Vancouver! Get ready to pack your bags, round up the kids (or leave them at home) and learn more by heading to Connect.

RBC attracts new stem cell donors with “watch and swab” screening of Mixed Matched: This year alone the RBC Gives Blood for Life program has organized more than two dozen group blood donations across the country. Now, RBC is doing even more by helping to attract young stem cell donors by hosting virtual “watch and swab” parties. By screening Mixed Match – a movie that highlights the difficulties mixed-race patients experience in finding a stem cell donor – they are targeting the 1,400 summer students they hired this year through their ‘RBC students’ program. “We’re targeting the younger generation because we want to encourage our students, interns and newest colleagues to make donating a lifelong habit,” says Chair, Amanda Moore. “My parents got me started when I was 17 and I just completed my 95th blood donation.” Learn more about the ways RBC continues to support Canada’s Lifeline at blood.ca/stories.

Question of the day: With provinces re-opening gyms, when will Canadian Blood Services be reopening its fitness rooms? Will they be re-opened on a province by province basis or do we have to wait to use the facilities until all provinces have re-opened gyms?

We know that exercise is an important part of health and wellbeing and we can appreciate that those who are working on-site as our essential frontline workers are keen to use the gym amenity.

At this current time, gyms continue to be closed. This is a decision made with an abundance of caution to ensure the safety of our employees and vital operations. We will be reviewing our gym spaces as part of the return to office plan. That assessment will consider factors including safety, risk and readiness. Given the critical nature of our operations, we will not be aligning our internal decisions on gym openings with public for-profit facilities.

Although the on-site gyms are closed, our healthy workplace team is making sure that resources are available to keep staff healthy both physically and mentally. If you haven’t already, we encourage you to sign up for live virtual fitness classes (offered three times a week) and check out our catalogue of workouts, meditation and other awesome videos you can do anytime on your Wellness Wednesday employee portal page.

Image

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.