Dozens of first responders rolled up their sleeves to donate blood in an annual event supporting Canadian Blood Services. It’s called Sirens for Life.
“It’s a competition between first responder agencies to donate blood…and this is one of the ways we can contribute to that and have a friendly competition between EMS and Fire,” said Corps Sgt. Major Christa Laforce.
The initiative is also about creating more public awareness of the constant need for blood donations.
“Only about two per cent of the population do donate,” said Jasmine Vallarta with Canadian Blood Services, Edmonton. “So, we’re just trying to bring that number up.”
Vallarta added that these blood donations help car crash victims, surgical patients, cancer treatments, and the production of medications from plasma.
CSM Laforce has also been on the receiving end of blood donations.
“In 2017, I was a recipient of a transfusion due to low blood count. So, there's a lot of medical illnesses that can arise, too, which require a transfusion, so this is absolutely lifesaving.”
Sirens for Life runs from January 1st-31st. Get involved at www.blood.ca.