Suspension of group swabbing events in response to COVID-19 pandemic – GlobeNewswire

OTTAWA, March 13, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Effective immediately, Canadian Blood Services is suspending all buccal swabbing events across the country and encouraging the public to register online to get their swab kit delivered in the mail.

This suspension aligns with guidance from the Public Health Agency of Canada to minimize the amount of time individuals spend in large crowds or in crowded spaces in order to reduce the transmission of COVID-19. It also is consistent with the public health measures being implemented by many of the provinces

The safety of registrants and their families is of utmost importance to us. We will be re-assessing this decision in 30 days.

For patients and families who might be concerned, bothCanadian Blood Services Stem Cell Registryand Canadian Blood Services Cord Blood Bankaremembersof the World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA) an international network of registries and cord blood banks that share a global database where all potential donors and cord blood units are listed. As cases of COVID-19 continue to emerge across the world, WMDA has launched a specialCOVID-19 webpagethat is publicly available and updated regularly when new information is shared by member organizations, professional societies and courier companies.

Canadian Blood Services will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation and provide updates as they are received.Our stem cell registry will continue to coordinate searches in Canada, as well as other international registries to help patients get the stem cells they need. Any critical information is being communicated to the corresponding transplant centre and/or registry toensure thatlife-saving products are safely transported to patients in need.Our donors will continue to be screened for active infections and travel history.

In addition to the cancellation of the swabbing events, Canadian Blood Services is also suspending our popular Whats Your Type events across the country. These are events that are frequently held in public spaces like shopping malls inviting people to find out their blood types. We will revisit this cancellation as well in the coming weeks.

If you requireassistance regarding activations currently in progress for any of the international registries in countries where COVID-19 cases have been recorded, please reach out to the transplant services coordinator team atcbs.onematch@blood.ca

For the latest information, visit our COVID-19 update.

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Suspension of group swabbing events in response to COVID-19 pandemic - GlobeNewswire