CFNU: Nurses Question Minister's Decision to Allow Canadian Blood Services to Use Unregulated Workers to Screen

OTTAWA, ONTARIO, Apr 06 (MARKET WIRE) --
The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) is questioning a decision
by the federal Health Minister, Leona Aglukkaq, to allow Canadian Blood
Services' to conduct a pilot project to replace nurses with low-skilled
workers for initial blood donor screening.

The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions calls for a transparent,
independent and thorough evaluation of the questionable changes to blood
donor screening.

The decision to allow low-skilled, unregulated workers to assess donor
safety as a pilot project was communicated to Canadian Blood Services
last Thursday before the long weekend.

The Krever Commission report on Canada's tainted blood scandal noted the
important connection between blood safety and donor screening. The
Commission said that "careful screening is essential to maintain a safe
blood supply and it must continue."

"Nurses reviewed the proposal to Health Canada and see no evidence that
drastically cutting nurses from donor screening is safe or necessary"
says Linda Silas, President of the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions.
"Krever said that the drive for cost-effectiveness and cost-efficiency
can jeopardize blood safety, yet we see no other basis for CBS wanting
this change."

CFNU commissioned external research on blood donor practices that found:

- CBS' proposed donation model is not aligned with international
best practices. In most other OECD countries nurses and/or
doctors are routinely used to screen potential blood donors,
contrary to CBS' claim that they are not;

- there is no compelling evidence that the use of low-skilled,
unregulated workers will ensure the safety of the blood supply or
donor health; and

- CBS can address the issue or nurse retention and recruitment by
improving the quality of their workplaces.

"Research shows that the elimination of nurses from direct care in
other healthcare sectors causes greater rates of error and worsening
health outcomes for patients," continues Linda Silas. "The evaluation
process on a matter of such public interest must be independent,
transparent and participatory."

The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions represents nurses working for
Canadian Blood Services in seven provinces.

Visit www.safeblood.ca

Contacts:
Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU)
Linda Silas
613-526-4661

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