Janet Jackden sitting with her daughter, Isabella, who was diagnosed with sickle cell disease at birth.
Members of Ottawa's Black community say while there's a large demand for ethnically diverse blood in Canada, there's also a hesitancy within the community to donate after years of being denied the opportunity due to historical stereotypes.Janet Jackden sits with her daughter Isabella, who was diagnosed at birth with sickle cell disease. People living with that condition require blood transfusions from donors who have a similar ethnicity.
A majority of the community are being rejected just by virtue of where they're coming from, where they were born.Canada loosened its policy regarding blood donations by donors from Africa from a complete ban to one more focused on malaria, but it's not clear exactly when that occurred. "When it hits closer to home things resonate a lot differently. So it is important as a parent, as a caregiver that I educate myself as much as I can and also just inform this health-care system as much as I can on behalf of her," she said.
According to the Canadian Blood Services website, 47 out of Africa's 54 countries are listed as at risk for contracting malaria, demonstrating how limiting eligibility criteria can be for immigrants from that continent. According to Eloise Tan, director of diversity equity and inclusion for CBS, that's because there's no suitable Health Canada-approved test available to screen those travellers for the disease.