Improving your donation experience
To help protect everyone who enters our doors:
- Face masks have become a mandatory requirement while within our donor centres. You are welcome to bring your own mask, including homemade masks, or you can request one from our staff. We kindly ask that you do not remove your mask at any time during the donation process. You will still be provided with post-donation drinks and snacks and ask that you consume them outside the donor centres.
- We’ve suspended pre-donation salty snacks. We encourage you to eat something salty prior to your appointment and drink 500 mL of water. This helps your blood volume and improves your donation experience.
- You will be screened upon arrival which includes receiving a temperature check. Please refrain from drinking a hot beverage five to ten minutes before arriving to your appointment.
- You will be asked to clean or sanitize your hands and maintain a two-metre distance from one another.
Before you donate
Looking after your health is important. On the day of your donation, there are a few extra things to do.
- Make sure you drink lots of water; eat a healthy meal and get a good night’s sleep.
- Have a salty snack and 500 mL of water just before you donate.
- Make sure to bring valid ID
- Donated before? Please bring your blood donor card.
- First-time donating or can’t find your card? Bring ID that is government-issued with your full name and date-of-birth. We’ll then order you a blood donor card for next time.
- And you might want to do a quick eligibility check before coming in. Take our quiz!

Donate
- Sit back and relax in a comfy chair while you donate. You can read, chat with our team members or other donors, or just relax knowing you are saving lives.
- And don’t worry, we always use a new, sterile needle for every donation and safely dispose of used needles.
- We'll keep a close eye on you while you're donating to make sure you're OK. Talk to a staff member if you feel uncomfortable or worried.
- Ever wonder what happens to your blood donation? Learn more about What happens to your donation.
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Relax and refresh
To limit the risk of spreading the virus, donors will be asked to sit for five minutes in the refreshment area with their masks on after their donation to rest and to allow collections staff to monitor their wellbeing.
After their rest period, they will be encouraged to grab a snack and refreshment to consume after they leave the donor centre.
If a donor chooses not to spend time in the recovery area they would be offered a snack and refreshment to go.
This is the perfect time to book your next appointment using our GiveBlood app or online at blood.ca.