With the arrival of spring in Sudbury and with all the sunshine and warm breezes, Sudbury's plasma donor centre is throwing down the welcome mat for all the new and returning plasma donors.
The centre is operated by Canadian Blood Services (CBS).
While Sudbury had a tradition of being a place where people used to arrive in droves to donate blood and plasma, things certainly changed during the pandemic.
It was in December of 2020 that the new plasma donation centre at 900 Lasalle Boulevard was officially opened. At the time it was the first of three new plasma centres in all of Canada. More are being built across Canada.
The COVID-19 pandemic was in full swing and getting worse back then. Things were changing. Teri-Mai Armstrong, Manager of Business Development for Donor Strategy & Planning said the whole landscape suddenly changed for an initiative dependent on donors and dependent on people getting out of the house to visit the donor centre.
Armstrong said it created a brutal reality for CBS and the drop in the total number of annual donors was dramatic.
"The story is our donor base has decreased by 31,000 donors in Canadian Blood Services. And we need people. We need people to come out now," said Armstrong.
Ever the optimist, Amrstrong said she has been amazed at the number of sports teams, school groups and corporate groups that have been donating. Armstrong showed off a "plasma playoff scoreboard" listing dozens of local teams and corporate groups that recently took part in a friendly competition.
Names such as Laurentian University School of Nursing, Vale's Garson Mine and École secondaire Hanmer were just a few of the groups listed. The winning group was the parents and coaches for the U12 Division of Greater Sudbury Ringette.
"So as appreciative and as thankful we are for all of the people that do come out on a committed basis today to make donations. the need is still great," said Armstrong.
"And the need is now and we need new donors and returning donors that maybe have donated blood in the past and have never tried out plasma to come out and donate plasma and to do it this month."
Armstrong said the blood services agency sends much-needed blood and blood products to hundreds of hospitals and clinics across Canada. She said most people know and appreciate that, but a lot of people might be worried about the process of donating.
She said the plasma centre has made the process easy and welcoming. It is important to be hydrated. The plasma centre helps out with food and beverages for all donors.
"So you need to be 17 years of age to donate. So anybody 17 years of age or older can donate. There's no upper age limit. So we take people of all sorts, and of ages," said Armstrong.
She said even people who take regular medications can donate.
One easy way is to call 1-888-236-6283 (1-888-2DONATE) where donors can chat with a Registered Nurse who will assess them and give advice.
The blood services website has an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page where prospective donors can find out more.
As for older residents, there is no upper age limit.
Armstrong recounts the story of an older individual who was a regular donor but was feeling poorly.
The blood services agency advised the donor that he needed to visit his doctor because he had an abnormal white blood cell count. It turned out the donor had leukaemia. Thankfully, the man was treated and the leukemia is in remission.
Armstrong said she is pleased that spring has arrived and she is counting on area residents to make a positive change in their usual routines.
"I think one of the biggest challenges right now is the environment we're living in. Everybody is busy, everybody is trying to get their lives back to normal, everybody is working hard to try and make the money required for price hikes and everything. It's a very busy time for people," she said.
"But this is the best opportunity for people to come and donate and get out of that environment for a minute and feel good about knowing that what they're doing today is going to help somebody wake up healthier tomorrow. Now is the perfect time," she added.
Len Gillis covers mining and health care for Sudbury.com.
