Research answers questions about infusion pumps’ effect on red blood cells Transfusion Blood Thursday, August 04, 2022 Abby Wolfe A study involving Canadian Blood Services researchers Narges Hadjesfandiari, research associate, and Dana Devine, chief scientist, located at the Centre for Blood Research in Vancouver, is helping to answer questions about the effect of infusion pumps...

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Donation policy and studies group at CSTM 2022 Plasma Transfusion Blood Tuesday, July 26, 2022 Niamh Caffrey Was this your first time attending CSTM 2022?   I joined Canadian Blood Services in the middle of the pandemic. The opportunity to attend CSTM 2022 was not only my first time attending a CSTM meeting, but also my...

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Updated resources for transfusion professionals: hemostatic disorders and hereditary angioedema Plasma Transfusion Blood Friday, July 15, 2022 Abby Wolfe Newly updated, trusted resources  Two chapters in Canadian Blood Services’ Clinical Guide to Transfusion were recently updated to provide health-care providers with the latest guidance on treating patients with hemostatic disorders, like hemophilia, and hereditary angioedema,...

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Research supports safety, feasibility of sexual behaviour-based screening Plasma Transfusion Blood Tuesday, June 21, 2022 Dr. Geraldine Walsh Canadian Blood Services is committed to making blood donation as inclusive as possible while maintaining the safety of the blood supply. To this end, by September 30, 2022, we will be removing the current three-month time-based deferral...

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Science writing behind the scenes Blood Thursday, June 09, 2022 Dr. Geraldine Walsh The Canadian Blood Services Lay Science Writing Competition is an annual event that engages and challenges our trainees to tell us their research stories. For the most recent competition, it was a pleasure to once again to partner with Science Borealis. Science...

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Norman Bethune Symposium 2022 – trainee reports Transfusion Blood Thursday, June 02, 2022 Canadian Blood Services trainees The 2022 Norman Bethune Symposium was held in a hybrid format, with some attendees in person in Vancouver, BC, and others attending virtually via Zoom. In today’s post, we hear from two trainees about their experience attending –...

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BloodTechNet supports educational laboratory rotation for transplant and transfusion ‘matchmakers’ Transplantation Organs and Tissues Transfusion Friday, May 27, 2022 Abby Wolfe Each year, Canadian Blood Services’ BloodTechNet award program supports innovative educational projects within the transfusion, cellular therapy and transplantation communities that can deliver educational tools and resources to health professionals in Canada. One successful...

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The value of qualitative research Blood Friday, May 20, 2022 Dr. Geraldine Walsh This post was written by Katie Baker with help from Jaya Rastogi and Sebastian Steven. All three are Master’s students working on a project with Canadian Blood Services’ scientist, Dr. Jennie Haw.  I’ve taken six different research methods and analysis courses in...

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Lay Science Writing Competition runner up: Queer identity and blood donation Transfusion Blood Thursday, May 12, 2022 Jaya Rastogi “For me, identifying as bisexual, it’s more of me wanting to stand as an ally with the rest of the LGBT community,” said a research participant during an interview about Canadian Blood Service’s donor screening questionnaire.   I...

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Lay Science Writing Competition runner up: The greatest tool in research  Transfusion Blood Thursday, April 28, 2022 Parth Patel The constant whirring and buzz of a research lab is jarring at first, but it eventually becomes a comforting white noise. The machines making the noise are, after all, the same machines that provide many of...

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