Official language rules block immigrants from donating blood, stem cells

Only those who read and write French or English can register to donate in Canada

Last Updated: Thursday, December 13, 2007 | 3:08 PM PT

CBC News

Canadian immigrants who don't speak English or French are being blocked from donating blood or registering as stem cell and bone marrow donors.

Canadian Blood Services only takes blood or bone marrow donations from people who speak at least one of Canada's official languages, a policy prompted by Health Canada regulations.
(CBC)

In November, Canadian Blood Services launched a program to persuade more people from ethnic minority groups to register as bone marrow and stem cell donors, but Health Canada regulations only allow those who speak one of the official languages to register.

Tung Chan, head of the immigrant aid group SUCCESS in Vancouver, told CBC News he can't understand why Canadian Blood Services would turn away potential donors from minority groups after going through all the effort of running a campaign to try and attract them.

About 400,000 Lower Mainlanders speak Chinese and thousands more speak other languages, but many don't speak English or French, said Chan.

Ed Yee, the regional director of Canadian Blood Services for B.C., said the rules are for everyone's safety because the mandatory donor form has many difficult questions that require accurate answers.

The language restrictions on donors are designed to ensure the security of the blood supply, Canadian Blood Services says.
(CBC)

Some of the questions are technical in nature, and others are sensitive, he said, adding that using translators or family members to help people fill out the forms would not be safe.

"There could be a situation where a donor feels embarrassed in the presence of that translator, and so they could answer that question in a way that is not accurate," said Yee.

"It's really to do with ensuring the safety of the blood supply."

Chan says the Canadian Blood Supply should translate its official forms into other languages and hire multilingual nurses.

"Simply have the questionnaires translated into the most common languages in the Lower Mainland … Chinese, Punjabi, Tagalog and Korean," Chan said.

If the CBS wants more immigrants from ethnic communities to be donors, it will have to change its two-language policy, he said.

The CBS is already working on hiring multilingual nurses, said Yee.

The One Match program was intended to increase the number of people from minority ethnic groups registered to donate bone marrow and stem cells for a wide range of medical treatments. Without donors, many with serious medical conditions such as leukemia may die.

A variety of diseases and disorders are treated with stem cell transplants, including:

• Leukemias
• Lymphomas
• Myeloma
• Bone marrow deficiency diseases caused by abnormal red blood cell production, such as thalassemia or sickle cell disease
• Aplastic anemia (the lack of normal blood cell production)
• Immune system disorders 
• Metabolic disorders

What's important, said Chan, is "the idea that people should not be excluded just because of their official language ability."