As of June 22, the third ever plasma donation centre in Canada has opened its doors right in the heart of the Okanagan.
The donation centre is the first of its kind in British Columbia, with the other two located in Lethbridge, AB and Sudbury, ON.
“Kelowna is a fantastic community, and it's because of our community support that we have a great donor base here who have historically supported with whole blood donations.” says Janna Pantella, Business Development Manager for the Plasma Centre. “Our hope is that those donors will now support us with plasma collection.”
Those who have donated blood in the past will find the plasma donation process very similar. The difference is that the plasma is actually separated from the blood during the collection process, it makes up about 55% of your blood, and it’s a yellow gold liquid.
Plasma collection is a vital part of creating medications used to treat patients with varieties of life threatening conditions such as immune deficiency, bleeding disorders, liver diseases, and many types of cancers.
Some people rely on these plasma protein products once or twice for an isolated incident, others rely on it for the rest of their lives.
There are some eligibility requirements in order to donate plasma, but there’s a simple test you can fill out HERE to find out if you qualify.
“We are seeing an increase in demand for these products, and it’s important for the community to come out now and help fill that need” says Pantella.
The centre is also partnering with local bakeries in the community to offer goodies, for all who stop by. This month this centre is featuring Sandrine’s french pastries for anyone to enjoy after their donation.
Appointments for plasma donation are now open, and you can visit blood.ca or download the GiveBlood app to help support the Canadian Blood Services foundation.
