Islanders urged to donate blood after winter storms led to hundreds of cancelled appointments
CBC
Winter weather is wreaking havoc on blood donation on P.E.I., so Islanders are being encouraged to book an appointment as soon as possible.
Canadian Blood Services' Charlottetown location needs donors after a number of people cancelled during recent storms.
Gordon Skiffington, the organization's community development manager for the Atlantic region, said there were 375 missed or cancelled appointments over that time.
"We really need to get people out, get them booking and attending their appointments over the next month," Skiffington told Island Morning's Laura Chapin. "The need for blood doesn't stop."
February has been a tough month for lost donations across the country because of all the snow that's fallen and the extreme cold that's spanned several regions.
Skiffington said Canadian Blood Services needs about 450 new donors per day across Canada to meet the demand for blood. Currently, they're only seeing about half that number.
He said many types of medical treatments aren't possible without a strong supply of blood. Children with leukemia, for example, might require up to eight donations per week while receiving treatment.
In Charlottetown, there are 430 unfilled appointments for the month of March, about a third of the slots available in a given month.
Skiffington said the blood supply is OK for now, but it might not be if the appointments aren't filled.
There is some good news that could help expand the donor pool.
In recent years Canadian Blood Services has lifted a ban on donations from sexually active gay and bisexual men. People with certain types of cancer who were once prevented from making a donation are now able to give blood if the disease has been in remission for 12 months.
The bottom line, said Skiffington, is that it's a good idea for people to check with Canadian Blood Services to see if donating is possible.
"If someone was told, even six months ago, that they could not donate, we ask that they check with us," he said.
Armando Toossi says he started to notice small chips in his car's paint about seven years ago.
Some Ontario voters who consider themselves politically non-aligned — setting aside their desire to boot Doug Ford and his PC government out of office — often bemoan the unwillingness of the Liberals and NDP to co-operate at election time.
When Lorraine Brown got her bone density scan results earlier this year, she was shocked to find that the lab had listed her ethnicity as 'white' and that the results were based on norms for Caucasian women — because she is Black.
It's easy to start avoiding social interaction during the winter months. Especially in St. John's where cold temperatures and lots of snowfall can make getting out difficult.
Halifax Regional Police say a 6-year-old child is in the hospital with life-threatening injuries after being stabbed multiple times in downtown Halifax.
Walking a kilometre off-road carrying heavy equipment to climb a frozen waterfall sounds challenging, but climber Heidi MacLeod said that's part of the fun.
After weeks of service disruptions, operators of the REM are rolling out a series of measures, including free service from Monday to Friday during this coming week.
Members of Manitoba's Ukrainian community commemorated the three-year anniversary of the start of Russia's full-scale invasion at a rally that drew hundreds to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights on Sunday.
Artificial intelligence has become increasingly present in people's lives, ranging from the ability to create a generative image in a messages with simple prompts, to using data to reduce workplace injuries.
Heather Jeffares, sporting an Edmonton Oilers cap and jacket, recalls using her paper route money to pay for Oilers tickets to watch Wayne Gretzky play and standing outside the church during his wedding.
Hundreds gathered in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES) on Saturday evening to support people experiencing homelessness, as Mayor Ken Sim's motion to freeze new supportive housing heads to city council next week.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paid a surprise visit to Kyiv on Monday along with other Western political leaders to mark the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
More than 100 people gathered outside Charlottetown city hall on Sunday to mark the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.