CHARLOTTETOWN - Canadians are still being urged to roll up their sleeves after a summer slowdown strained the national blood supply.
Canadian Blood Services says more donors have come through its centres since it first flagged a nearly 20 per cent drop in the blood supply on July 22, with communities rallying across the country.
But supply remains low for several blood types, said Stephen Empringham, a regional development manager with the non-profit who oversees Atlantic Canada as well as northern and eastern Ontario.
“Sometimes when people are on vacation and enjoying the summer and making summer memories, keeping an appointment or just having a donation isn’t necessarily front of mind,” Empringham said.
In a statement to CTV News on Aug. 5, a spokesperson said appointments were back within the optimal range of about 18,000 a week and inventory levels had improved.
However, the need continues.
“Especially as we head into late August and get closer to the September long weekend, when appointment bookings tend to dip,” the spokesperson said. “This is why it’s important for people to keep booking and keeping appointments.”
As of Wednesday, Canadian Blood Services had less than eight days’ supply of A-negative, B-negative, O-positive and O-negative blood, making donations of those types especially needed.
Blood has a shelf life of about six weeks, or 42 days.
When inventory starts dropping, decisions sometimes have to be made that can affect patients, Empringham said.
“The shortage of blood may mean that surgeries are cancelled, or treatments or different things like that may have to be cancelled,” he added.
But the country is “nowhere near that level right now.”
Over the past decade, the share of eligible Canadians donating blood has fallen by about half, from four per cent to two per cent.
Empringham pointed to several possible reasons, including changing demographics and hesitation among prospective donors who may be unsure about the process.
Despite the decline, he believes there’s “enough opportunity and room” to grow within Canadian Blood Services’ existing infrastructure.
The Charlottetown donor centre has been busier, Empringham said, and has moved back toward normal appointment ranges for this point in the summer.
It’s the only donor centre on P.E.I., and Canadian Blood Services has received feedback about offering services in other parts of the province.
Blood collected in P.E.I. is part of a national system that distributes supply according to where it’s needed.
Health P.E.I. said all blood collected in New Brunswick, P.E.I. and Nova Scotia is sent to Canadian Blood Services in Dartmouth, N.S., for processing and distribution. It cannot determine where an individual unit was collected.
There are other ways to help beyond giving blood, including volunteering, donating money and taking part in stem cell swabbing.
Empringham said Canadian Blood Services understands that the height of summer may not be the right time for everyone to donate, but asks people to consider booking an appointment before the season ends.
First-time donors may find the process easier with friends or family alongside them, he said.
“You have your support. You have people that are going through this exact same thing at the exact same time,” Empringham said.
