Canadian Blood Services takes donor recruitment campaign to U of A

Some University of Alberta students joined the Canadian Blood Services' "Canada's Lifeline" campaign.

EDMONTON — Canadian Blood Services took their blood donor recruitment campaign to the University of Alberta Tuesday, in an effort to source the 80 new donors needed every week to keep up with patient demand.

Staff were on site at the university’s Physical Activity Wellness Centre hoping to blood type at least 500 people as part of a country-wide campus initiative to get students to join "Canada’s Lifeline." Officials hope to get 3,000 students across the Prairie region to learn their blood type.

Rachelle Drummond was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia at the age of five. She received many blood products during nearly three years of chemotherapy. Now cancer free for 12 years, she is grateful for her unknown but caring donors.

"I wouldn't be here without the donors who took a little bit of an hour out of their day to donate to me, without even knowing who they're giving to," she told CTV News Edmonton. "Just out of their generosity, they're saving lives of people they have no idea about."

The campaign is ongoing and students can book appointments at campus sites across the prairies. For more information, click here.