Canadian Blood Services’ plasma donor centre in Lethbridge, Alta., has seen a large amount of support over the last several months but still has appointments to fill, according to the organization.
“When we first opened in December, we saw about 25 donors a day, about two donors an hour,” said business development manager Brenna Scott.
“Now, we’re up to nine donors an hour, and we can bring in about 114 donors a day.
“(Over) the past nine months, we’ve actually had about 2,600 donors that have come in through this centre.”
A protein-rich liquid in blood, plasma helps other blood components circulate throughout the body. Plasma donations can help treat many types of cancer, bleeding disorders and liver diseases.
Donating plasma is very similar to donating blood.
“The big difference is our collection method,” she explained. “We have a centrifuge that takes your blood out, spins it very, very quickly, which then removes (plasma) from your blood. We just collect the plasma and then the rest of your blood — so those red blood cells and those platelets — all get returned back to you.”
Scott said prior to the opening of its three plasma centres in Canada — in Sudbury, Ont., Lethbridge and Kelowna, B.C. — only around 13 per cent of plasma came from Canada, with the rest outsourced from other countries like the United States.
“Over the past number of years, we’ve seen a big increase in the demand for plasma and plasma protein products, which make a certain amount of medications,” Scott said, adding two more centres are set to open in Ontario in the spring.
“We really want to be more self-sufficient here in Canada for those protein products.”
Neil Langevin, a local plasma donor, tries to donate each month as a way to honour his godson Logan Boulet.
“While I can’t necessarily right now be an organ donor, this is kind of the next best or next-closest way to help my community.”
Taking to social media, Langevin and friends Toby Boulet and Greg Thompson have turned donating into a friendly competition.
“We have a lot of fun with it, obviously,” he said. “We have a bit of a competition going and we’ve managed to wrangle in some people from across the country.”
For those who are hesitant to donate due to lack of time, Langevin suggests using the appointment as a way to unwind.
“People are very busy, and I would just encourage people to (use this) as a wellness break,” he said.
“They’re very professional there and they do a great job of making you comfortable and one of the greatest things is the snacks.”
As of Tuesday, Scott said around 300 appointments were still vacant for the rest of the week, with around 1,200 appointment openings for the month of November.
“In October, we had a friendly challenge between a lot of different local fitness centres in town, to help us reach our goal of them bringing in about 150 plasma donations,” Scott said.
“In November, we are starting a car dealership challenge.”
Eligibility requirements for donation plasma can be found on the Canadian Blood Services’ website.