Dr. Samara Zavalkoff discovered that more than 350 potential organ donation opportunities may have been missed between 2016 and 2018

The World Brain Death Project was created to formulate recommendations about the determination of brain death based on extensive reviews of the literature and expert opinion of a large multi-disciplinary, international panel, including representation from intensive care (adult and pediatric), critical care nursing, neurocritical care, neurology and neurosurgery.

Canadian Blood Services’ Donation Physician Network (DPN) connects clinical care physicians and provides access to educational resources including webinars on leading practices, clincial case studies, literature and emerging issues. In the spirit of international collaboration, experts in organ donation and transplantation from the U.K. and Australia recently shared lessons they have learned over the past decade as part of a series of webinars hosted by the DPN. Lessons from afar Dr. Helen Opdam of Australia and Dr. Dale Gardiner of the U.K. provide valuable perspectives in their presentations

As part of a larger ongoing effort to develop non-invasive technologies to monitor blood products during storage, researchers have developed a new technique to assess the quality of blood without breaching the sterility of blood bags.

Canadian Blood Services has recently made progress on several fronts that may further evolve the eligibility criteria for men who have sex with men. This includes supporting more research projects as part of the MSM Research Grant Program and working to reduce the waiting period from one year to three months based on the latest evidence.

Researchers are invited to apply for funding under the MSM Research Grant Program

New publication: Donor deferral policies for men who have sex with men: past, present and future

“When individuals have iron deficiency (or iron deficiency anemia), they may experience decreased exercise tolerance, increased shortness of breath with activity,” explains Dr. Pambrun, “possibly can also have a decrease in concentration or changes in mood.”