Roll up your sleeves to donate blood for East Coasters hit by bad weather

East and West Coasters may not agree on everything, but a national blood inventory means we heavily rely on each other in times of need.

Canada’s Atlantic provinces have been pummeled by snowstorms this week, and that means the region is down more than a thousand blood donations in the past few days alone, because people simply can’t get out of their homes to donate.

Continued severe weather has so far forced Canadian Blood Services to cancel 18 clinics and dozens of others have also been impacted by low attendance. More cancellations are expected in the next few days due to the severe storms that continue to hammer the Atlantic region.

IN PHOTOS: East Coast digs out from winter storm while bracing for another

David Patterson, director of donor relations in the B.C. and Yukon regions, says this winter has been unlike any other year.

“Not only has it impacted us quite a bit, which is abnormal, but it has also hit us right across the country, which is the biggest problem,” Patterson said.

From the West Coast to the Maritimes, the first part of February saw snow in B.C., very low temperatures in Alberta and massive blizzards that continue in Atlantic Canada.

“We operate on a national inventory, so that in general, if a storm hits in a particular area, we can cover that by collections in another area,” Patterson said. “However, when it hits us from coast to coast as it has in February, that’s when we pay more attention and reach out to make sure that the collection losses that we experience don’t impact patient care in any way.”

So they are reaching out to Canadians to make sure they know just how much of an impact the weather has had across the country.

“I don’t think it happens that often where we get this band of winter that hit us right across the country – both in December and again now in early February. [B.C.] has come out the other side now, but our friends in the Atlantic provinces are still getting hit by blizzards.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I don't think it happens that often where we get this band of winter that hit us right across the country - both in December and again now in early February. [B.C.] has come out the other side now, but our friends in the Atlantic provinces are still getting hit by blizzards."

Patterson is hoping British Columbians will show some goodwill for our neighbours in the east.

“Roll up your sleeves and have some sympathy for those folks who are out shoveling and trying to survive. It’s all very fresh in our memory, so we can all remember what that feels like.”

Patterson says a series of storms that hit British Columbia through Christmas and into early February had also forced a number of donation clinic closures. He says about 300 donations were lost during the last storm to hit the South Coast in the week of Feb. 6 because donors could not get safely to their appointments.

READ MORE: B.C.’s bad weather, holidays to blame for a drop in blood donations

“Now we are at a point in British Columbia, where our weather has thankfully returned to our seasonal norms and people can get out and about,” he said. “What we are asking people to do is — if they have never donated before and have been thinking about it, now is a great time to; and if they missed their appointment through the snow and winter, now is a great time to catch up as well.”

Patterson says, right now, three of the eight bloods types (O-, A- and B+) are in the below “three-day inventory” supply level nation-wide.

“Normally, we like to be in the five to eight day supply zone,” he said. “It gives us that buffer so if a weather impact happens or we have a big issue in one part of the country, we draw on that national inventory to make sure we can support patient needs.”

To book an appointment, locate a clinic, check your eligibility, and more, use the Give Blood app or visit blood.ca.