As we celebrate the holidays, Canadian Blood Services is encouraging central Albertans to give the gift of life this holiday season by scheduling a blood donation appointment. 

“We do have 25,000 open appointments nationally between now and the end of December, so we are kind of calling out to anybody who is eligible to donate blood,” said Tiana Doyle, Territory Manager for Canadian Blood Services.

Whether you are visiting loved ones away from home, or if you are staying home for the holiday season, Canadian Blood Services is able to accept blood donations throughout all of Canada throughout the holiday season.  

“If you visit blood.ca you can type in your postal code and it will bring up any open appointments near you or any blood donation events that are happening near you and then you can book into those events through the website,” said Doyle. 

Blood.ca can also help you determine if you are eligible to donate. However, Doyle says there is a good chance that you are able to donate if you are over the age of 17 and in good health. The need for blood is always constant. 

“One in every two Canadians is actually eligible to donate blood, but only one in every 80 are donating blood. We're actually seeing the lowest donor base that we've seen in decades,” added Doyle. 

Doyle says appointments will only take about an hour of your time but the actual amount of time it takes for the blood to be drawn will only take about 10-15 minutes. 

Into the New Year, Canadian Blood Services will be launching their ‘Give 3 in 2023’ Campaign encouraging donors to triple their donations in some way. 

“We're challenging Canadians no matter where they live to commit to giving in three different ways over the course of 2023. There's multiple ways each person can kind of tailor the program to how it works for them. You choose three things which can be you give blood, you give plasma, or you give platelets. It can be posting your donation on social media and encouraging others to come give with you. It can be joining our stem cell registry or register to become a part of our organs and tissues program. You can also give us a financial donation,” said Doyle. 

For more information on how you can give blood you can visit Blood.ca for more information.