ALBERTA REGIONAL LIAISON COMMITTEE

Transcription

1 ALBERTA REGIONAL LIAISON COMMITTEE SUMMARY NOTES of the meeting of the Canadian Blood Services held via teleconference on Tuesday, January 17, 2006 from 5:00pm 8:00pm PRESENT: REGRETS: S. Matsumoto (Chair) L. Biletsky D. Carfantan D. Caspar D. Duncan J. Flath M. Hinshaw D. Kaufmann T. Onoda (NLC Rep) J. Taylor Dr. N. Yee A. Laycock J. McNabb T. Niksic S. Perilli M. Saincher D. Tilley T. Trinh S. Wright Cst. A. Zenko 1.0 OPENING OF THE MEETING S. Matsumoto, Chair, thanked everyone for attending the meeting and ensured that all members were provided a meeting package. A warm welcome was extended to the new members of the RLC in Red Deer and Edmonton. Calgary representatives were thanked for continuing to serve on the committee. 2.0 REVIEW OF AGENDA The agenda was approved as circulated. 3.0 APPROVAL OF SUMMARY NOTES The Summary Notes of November 16, 2005 were approved as circulated. Follow-up from previous meeting: Record of Donation Study: No further information at this time; bring forward to next meeting. Template update to be provided after each meeting, which members can drop into their newsletters or to their networks. S. Wright will mail a copy of Blood Lines, CBS s new external newsletter, to all RLC members. If you would like to include any of these stories in your own newsletter, please contact S. Wright for an electronic copy. Add feedback from member groups to the next agenda. 4.0 OVERVIEW OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AT CANADIAN BLOOD SERVICES D. Kaufman provided a presentation on public involvement at CBS. She discussed the tainted blood tragedy of the 1980s and the resulting loss of public confidence in the blood system. This led to the 1993 Krever Inquiry, a public inquiry into the blood system led by Justice Horace Krever. Justice Krever stated The public must have access to information about the policy, management and operations of the blood supply system and be represented in the decision making. Page 1 of 5

2 Based on recommendations of the inquiry, Canadian Blood Services was created in The NLC and RLC are two examples of the steps CBS has taken to rebuild trust and ensure Canadians contribute to decision making in the blood system. 5.0 REVIEW OF TERMS OF REFERENCE, CONFLICT OF INTEREST AND CODE OF CONDUCT GUIDELINES Terms of Reference: Outline the purpose and structure of the RLC Members are appointed for a three-year term; appointments will be staggered to ensure continuity Co-Chaired by the CBS Regional Director, and one person from the committee Meets three times per year (January, April and September) Conflict of Interest Guidelines: The definition of conflict of interest as it pertains to this committee is defined on page one of the Conflict of Interest Guidelines. Code of Conduct and Responsibilities: S. Matsumoto provided a general overview of the Code of Conduct and Responsibilities. NOTE: These documents were included in each participant s meeting package. The committee will review the Terms of Reference, Conflict of Interest Guidelines and Code of Conduct in more detail at the face-to-face meeting in Edmonton. 6.0 BUSINESS ARISING 6.1 NLC Representative Report D. Kaufmann reported highlights of the last NLC meeting on T. Onoda s behalf: There were a few changes to CBS s Board of Directors and NLC members had the opportunity to meet the new people. The NLC received a report from the Board of Directors, including an update about the increased occurrences of WNV in Canada and CBS s ongoing response. As of October 11, 2005, there have been no reports of WNV cases that were suspected to be transfusion transmitted. The Board has approved an updated version of the CBS Foundation Policy. NLC feedback was used in developing this new policy. The NLC heard about an evaluation of the NLCs and RLCs completed by an independent company. The following recommendations were made: o Maintain current size and balance o Maintain three-year term of appointment o Revise terms of reference to clarify expectations o Send minutes more quickly Ian Mumford, Chief Operating Officer for CBS gave an update on how CBS is meeting its goals: o Hospitals report high satisfaction levels with CBS services. o New donor retention rates have climbed but are still under target. Page 2 of 5

3 A discussion was held about selecting a new NLC Representative from Alberta: The NLC meets three times per year (February, June, October) in Ottawa. Members provide an update from their local RLC meetings to the NLC and provide the RLC group with an update from the NLC meetings. The term of office is three years. Upcoming meetings: Feb. 20, 2006, June 5, 2006 and October 25-26, All expenses (airfare, hotels, meals, incidentals) are paid by CBS. The RLC will put forward two names for consideration by the Board of Directors Two names will be identified at the April meeting so the Board of Directors has time to appoint the new member prior to the June 5 th meeting. If anyone is interested in representing Alberta on the NLC, please contact S. Wright at stephen.wright@bloodservices.ca or (403) Progress on Regionalization D. Kaufmann provided an update on status of the new RLC. The Alberta Regional Liaison Committee will include approximately 20 members as follows: Six members each from Calgary and Edmonton, three members each from Red Deer and Lethbridge and two rural members, which will consist of donors, recipients, volunteers, hospital representatives, partners/sponsors, patient group representatives and youth representatives. The goal is to have all positions filled before the next meeting in April. Meeting Co-Chair: The committee is asked to select a Co-Chair. The duties include: o Working with the Regional Director and Head Office to prepare meeting agendas, which usually involves a 30 minute conference call a couple of weeks prior to the meeting. o Playing an active role in the RLC meetings. o Ensure that the Committee functions within the Terms of Reference and Code of Conduct and Responsibilities approved by the Board of Directors. o The Terms of Reference state that the co-chair prepares meeting minutes, but this will be taken care of by CBS staff. o Please forward you name to S. Wright if you are interested in co-chairing. A vote will be held at the next meeting. Action: S. Wright to distribute Terms of Reference. See attached. 7.0 NEW BUSINESS 7.1 Review Blood 101 The group watched the Blood 101 video, which explains how blood donations are tested and manufactured into different blood products. The video is available on-line at: If anyone is interested in borrowing a VHS copy of the video, please contact S. Wright. 7.2 Buffy Coat Update D. Powell, Hospital Customer Service Representative for CBS in Alberta and the NWT, gave a presentation on Buffy Coat Component Production: In October 2005, Edmonton became a pilot site for Buffy Coat, a new production method for the preparation of platelets from whole blood donations. Although widely used in Europe and other locations, Edmonton is the first location in North America to pilot buffy coat production. Page 3 of 5

4 The term buffy coat comes from the nearly colourless (buff colour) of the cell mixture produced from spinning the whole blood to separate the components. There are significant benefits of switching to this method: o 24-hour production window increases ability to process platelets from more whole blood donations, improving inventory availability o provision of a pooled, ready-to-transfuse platelet concentrate to hospitals (one dose, rather than individual bags) o increase in the amount of plasma removed from whole blood donations, allowing CBS to send more plasma for fractionation 7.3 Pandemic Flu Preparedness S. Matsumoto provided a presentation on CBS s preparations to manage the impact of a flu pandemic: A pandemic is described as a worldwide outbreak A flu pandemic can occur when there is a new strain of the flu that most people have no immunity to, and there is no current, effective vaccine. It would take up to 5 months to produce a new vaccine and only limited quantities might be available. The last pandemic flu outbreaks were: o The Spanish Flu 1918 o The Asian Flue 1957 o The Hong Kong Flu 1968 CBS is taking many steps to ensure the blood system is prepared for a potential pandemic. The plan will address many potential scenarios, including: o Staff and volunteer shortages o Donor shortages o Bans on public gatherings (clinic sites) o Changing needs for blood products o Shortage of supplies o Communication with stakeholders The group was asked the following questions: WHAT COMMUNICATIONS WOULD YOU, AS A STAKEHOLDER IN THE BLOOD SYSTEM, EXPECT OR WANT? o Coordinated information with other organizations: Health Canada Calgary Health Region o Reassurance about safety of the blood supply: What mechanisms/testing are in place? What is CBS doing to reduce the risk to recipients? Safety standards are still paramount Communicate the risks and the action CBS is implementing to reduce the risks to recipients, donors and stakeholders CBS is proactive/preparing in advance o Timely, direct, continual and concise communications in layman s terms Avoid too much information Quick response important No technical language Need accurate information to avoid panic/stress Need one source of communication with accurate messages that stakeholders can communicate back to their interest groups CBS is open for business o Must maintain communication with recipients Page 4 of 5

5 WHAT COMMUNICATIONS TOOLS ARE MOST APPROPRIATE FOR COMMUNICATING WITH STAKEHOLDERS? o Information must be accessible from home o TV/radio o Media o and Web, with regular updates o Emergency response broadcast system o Posters/written materials available at supermarkets and other locations where essential supplies are distributed to the public o Information at vaccination locations o Partner with local health authorities/other partners o Direct communication line (phone) 8.0 FUTURE TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION ABCDs Automated Blood Collection Devices Future trends in the blood system Update on R&D Research Recruitment strategies (to address demographic changes) 9.0 PROPOSED MEETING DATES The next meeting be held in April 2006 in Edmonton, and will include a tour of buffy coat production. The group agreed that Friday is the best day of the week, and that 10 am is an appropriate start time. Action: S. Wright to circulate proposed meeting dates, times and travel arrangements for people to review ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 pm. Page 5 of 5