Adjunct scientist receives 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award for extraordinary contributions to guidelines, clinical trials, and more

Canadian Blood Services has recognized Dr. Jeannie Callum with a 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award. This distinction, which was announced during the December 2025 Open Board Meeting, celebrates individuals whose extraordinary contributions have advanced care, research and innovation in transfusion or transplantation – impacting patients and communities across Canada. 

A passion for education, research, and patient safety

Dr. Jeannie Callum is a leading voice in transfusion medicine—a field focused on the safe and effective use of blood and blood products. Based at Kingston Health Sciences Centre and Queen’s University in Kingston, ON, her career has focused on improving how hospitals manage blood transfusions, especially in critical situations like major bleeding or complex surgeries. 

Dr. Callum was appointed an adjunct scientist with Canadian Blood Services in 2021. She is a co-lead of major research programs, including the QUEST Transfusion Medicine Research Program and the Canadian Transfusion Trials Group (CTTG), which aim to support evidence-based practices to make transfusion safer and more efficient.  

• See our Impact Report spotlight (page 4 & 5) to learn more about CTTG, the pan-Canadian network focused on informing best practices in transfusion medicine by accelerating clinical research studies, supporting multi-disciplinary research partnerships, and fostering education and mentorship. 

With over 300 scientific publications, thousands of citations and contributions to national and international clinical guidelines, her research has influenced transfusion medicine worldwide. But what truly sets her apart is her commitment to patients and the blood system: she not only advocates for donation, but is also a donor herself, having given blood, platelets, bone marrow, and stem cells.  

Discover more about the inspiring and world-class contributions of Dr. Callum and other Lifetime Achievement Award recipients on blood.ca.  

Through the years: A timeline of Dr. Callum’s contributions to transform transfusion medicine  

Dr. Callum has led and supported numerous clinical trials that have transformed transfusion medicine and bleeding management in hospitals. While the scope and volume of her contributions are too numerous to capture in entirety, we’ve compiled a selection of highlights from the past decade below.  

• 2015: A landmark clinical trial known as ABLE (Age of Blood Evaluation) for which Dr. Callum was a co-author confirmed that, after comparing fresh with standard-aged red blood cells, the fresher blood offered no survival benefit. This reinforced existing storage practices, easing pressure on blood banks. This same year, results of the PROPPR (Pragmatic, Randomized Optimal Platelet and Plasma Ratios) clinical trial, which tested the ratios of plasma, platelets, and red blood cells given in trauma resuscitation, supported the adoption of the 1:1:1 ratio. Dr. Callum was also a co-author on this work which continues to shape massive transfusion protocols globally.
• 2016: The feasibility study known as FiiRST (Fibrinogen in the Initial Resuscitation of Severe Trauma) explored rapid fibrinogen concentrate administration in trauma. It proved early delivery was possible and safe, paving the way for larger trails on factor-based resuscitation. Building on this, Dr. Callum appeared as the senior author on the multicentre trial FiiRST-2 (Fibrinogen in the Initial Resuscitation of Severe Trauma –2), which compared fibrinogen concentrate plus prothrombin complex concentrate (a plasma-derived product that provides clotting factors) versus plasma for massive hemorrhage. Results published in 2025 revealed no superiority of factor concentrates, advancing understanding of when and how factor concentrates should be used.   
• 2017: To support science communication and public awareness about the impact of transfusion medicine, blood donation, and research, Dr. Callum penned a six-part series on this blog. It featured her real-life experience witnessing the impact of blood donation on patient lives.
• 2019: As a senior author on the FIBRES (Fibrinogen Replacement in Surgery) trial, Dr. Callum published results on the use of fibrinogen for cardiac surgery patients. It showed fibrinogen concentrate was as effective as cryoprecipitate in managing perioperative bleeding, enabling faster, standardized treatment for patients.
• 2020: Prompted by the global spread of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV2), Dr. Callum and partners on an international team launched the largest clinical trial on convalescent plasma as a possible treatment strategy, called CONCOR-1. While results published in the high-impact journal Nature Medicine found that convalescent plasma was not an effective treatment, the study was an important demonstration of how quickly the transfusion community can mobilize in times of critical need. Read Dr. Callum’s summary of the results of the CONCOR-1 trial in this R.E.D. blog and Transfusion Medicine commentary article.
• 2024: The International Collaboration for Transfusion Medicine Guidelines (ICTMG) – a collaborative of expert volunteers around the globe whose secretariat is hosted by Canadian Blood Services – published a new clinical guideline offering evidence-based recommendations for the use of the plasma-derived product, intravenous albumin. With Dr. Callum as the lead author and clinical lead for the resulting knowledge mobilization project, from which efforts to support the uptake of the guideline’s recommendations and de-implement the use of albumin in settings where it is not evidence-based, are making an impact.
• 2025: The FARES-II multicenter trial, led by Drs. Karkouti and Callum and colleagues, compared four-factor PCC to frozen plasma for controlling bleeding during cardiac surgery. Published in March 2025, the findings marked a significant advancement in cardiac care, demonstrating that PCC not only improves patient recovery and safety but also reduces strain on hospital resources. 

Bolstering insights through data partnerships

To amplify practice improvements further, Dr. Callum has also supported recent projects with GEMINI and GADGET that focus on analyzing and connecting real-world, hospital utilization data to inform best practices and enable continuous quality improvement. 

• Read more about this research on different blood components:
  • Red cells: Red Cell Transfusion in General Medicine Patients at Teaching and Non-teaching Hospitals: A Retrospective Cohort Analysis.
  • Platelets: Opportunities for improving platelet transfusion practice: A large retrospective audit across 22 hospitals
  • Plasma: Plasma transfusion practice: A five-year audit of plasma transfusion at 23 hospitals. 

Dr. Callum’s focus on ensuring that the evidence generated by clinical trials and rigorous research activities translates into actionable insights is driving safer, more efficient, and patient-centered transfusion practices nationwide. 

Congratulations on this Lifetime Achievement Award, Dr. Callum!  

The 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award call for nominations period will open in early February. Full details will be posted on the Canadian Blood Services Lifetime Achievement Award webpage.

About Canadian Blood Services’ Lifetime Achievement Award 

Established in 2002, the Lifetime Achievement Award honours individuals whose landmark contributions have significantly advanced the fields of transfusion and transplantation medicine, stem cell, or cord blood research. Recipients are recognized for improving the safety and quality of blood products and making notable advancements in medical practices. 

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.