Source: The Record
New Canadians might feel more comfortable donating blood if mobile clinics were set up at their places of worship.
Abdul Mannan Syed, imam at the mosque in Waterloo, said Canadian Blood Services would probably get a higher participation rate from Muslims if clinics were held at the mosque, rather than requiring people to travel to a permanent clinic.
"It would be easier for them. They know this place," Syed said.
Congregation members might be reluctant to go to a clinic at another location because they might get lost. Or they might get busy and decide not to take the time to donate.
It would be ideal to hold a blood donor clinic at the mosque on a Friday because it's the day Muslims hold weekly prayers, Syed added.
Regulations in some houses of worship rule them out for mobile clinics, said Leslie Schnarr, recruitment co-ordinator at the Canadian Blood Services clinic in Waterloo.