Research and education highlights: Innovation and Portfolio Management in 2021–22

Canadian Blood Services’ Innovation and Portfolio Management annual progress report for 2021–22 is now available. 

The report recaps the collaborations in research and education that take place every day in Innovation and Portfolio Management to support our shared purpose: to help every patient, match every need and serve every Canadian.  

These investments in research and education are vital to meeting the current and future needs of Canada’s blood system.  

For example, insights from our research network are helping to expand the donor base, uncover new insights into the biological mechanisms of blood, improve blood manufacturing processes, and boost our ability to provide even better-matched, safer blood components.  

The report highlights just some activities over the past year from our discovery, development and social scientists and medical experts, as well as our Canada-wide network of experts and partners: 

• Implementation of more inclusive donor eligibility criteria while protecting the health of donors and recipients.  
• Introduction of pathogen-reduction technology—another safeguard against transfusion-transmitted infections—in one of our platelet components 
• Clinical research that is advancing the fields of transfusion medicine and transfusion science, including groundbreaking work on COVID-19 treatments. 
• SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence tracking over the course of the pandemic, which helped inform public health policy. 
• Building leaders in medicine and science by supporting training, education and skills development. 

In a stakeholder survey of our research activities, sent this year to over 180 stakeholders, 89% of survey respondents reported that research supported by Canadian Blood Services has influenced their own research, and 89% reported having used the knowledge created through Innovation and Portfolio Management to take measures to improve blood safety. Overall, the survey findings show the high-quality research we support is relevant and is being used to improve Canada’s blood system.

Read the full Innovation and Portfolio Management annual progress report, 2021–2022.

Canadian Blood Services – Driving world-class innovation

Through discovery, development and applied research, Canadian Blood Services drives world-class innovation in blood transfusion, cellular therapy and transplantation—bringing clarity and insight to an increasingly complex healthcare future. Our dedicated research team and extended network of partners engage in exploratory and applied research to create new knowledge, inform and enhance best practices, contribute to the development of new services and technologies, and build capacity through training and collaboration. Find out more about our research impact.  

The opinions reflected in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Canadian Blood Services nor do they reflect the views of Health Canada or any other funding agency.