By Scott Roblin

Canadian Blood Services making plea for donations ahead of Labour Day

Aug 14, 2018 | 5:24 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – During a medical emergency, blood is one of the most vital resources towards keeping a patient alive.

But with a drop in donations this month, the Canadian Blood Services national supply is starting to run dangerously low.

That’s why a public push for 22,000 donations before August 26 has been made to keep enough blood on hand for five to seven days for the rest of the summer.

Medicine Hat hosted their monthly clinic on Tuesday, with Warren Frank being one of the first donors through the door.

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“It’s easy to do, it takes an hour of your time,” said Frank. “After that, you feel good that you did something good.”

Since he was 18-years-old, Frank has been rolling up his sleeves to donate his blood.

Attending close to 200 clinics over his life, he knows firsthand the impact that a single donation can make on a patient.

“I’ve had family that have needed blood in the past,” he said. “But, anytime you see an accident or anything like that, or hear of one, you know exactly that there’s going to be a lot of blood required.”

According to Canadian Blood Services, one in two Canadians is eligible to donate blood but only one in 60 actually go through with attending a clinic.

After hearing the national plea for donations earlier in the week, Brett Farr decided on a whim to make the trip out.

“I saw something in the news saying that they were looking for a bunch of blood donors,” said Farr. “So, I looked up Medicine Hat and there was one today, so here I am.”

Canadian Blood Services territory manager Lisa Castro said most people don’t realize the pressing need for donors, especially with the short life span of donations.

“One of the most common uses for platelets is for the treatment of our cancer patients,” said Castro. “So, those platelets have a short shelf life of only seven days, and that’s why that really drives that demand.”

Tuesday’s clinic at the Medicine Hat Lodge was booked solid, something that didn’t surprise Frank.

“I’ve been in the Hat for almost 20 years since I’ve been coming here and there’s always a good turnout,” he said.

Despite the consistent local turnout, Medicine Hat doesn’t have a daily donation clinic like larger centres in Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, and Red Deer.

Farr said he’d be on board for a walk-in option locally that would provide more options for donating blood.

“I’m very forgetful,” he said. “So, unless things happen like this where I catch it on a day or I get a reminder or something like this, I’ll usually miss it.”

As of right now however, Canadian Blood Services is comfortable with how the monthly clinic is being used in Medicine Hat.

“I think our focus right now is to fill our existing clinics,” she said. “As I mentioned, we are in Medicine Hat on a regular basis, we’re there monthly back-to-back. And, we’re hoping that we continue to collect the collections we are doing in Medicine Hat.”

A seasoned veteran of the donor chair, Frank is hopeful the latest push will get more young Canadians involved in donating their time and blood.

“Especially if you’re a younger person 18 or over, come on and give it a try,” he said. “They’ll really help you out a lot here and it’s easy.”

A second clinic will be held at the Medicine Hat Lodge on Wednesday, with the next clinic coming on September 18 at the Medicine Hat Stampede Grounds.