Ottawa, February 26, 2003 – Canadian Blood Services is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Verna M. Skanes of St. John’s Newfoundland as Chair of the Board of Directors until its next Annual General Meeting. Dr. Skanes assumed her new role on February 14, 2003. She replaces Gary Chatfield of Mississauga, Ontario who recently stepped down for personal reasons.

As one of the founding members of the Canadian Blood Services Board of Directors, Dr. Skanes has brought her extensive experience serving on various corporate and public boards to the organization. She is a former member of the Medical Research Council Standing Committee on Ethics, a member of the Advisory Board of the Cardiovascular and Respiratory Health Institute of the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, a member of the Advisory Board of the Atlantic Innovation Fund, and a former Assistant Dean, Research and Graduate Studies, Faculty of Medicine, Memorial University.

“Dr. Skanes has been a vital part of the Canadian Blood Services Board of Directors from the very beginning,” said Dr. Graham Sher, Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Blood Services. “We are delighted she has agreed to take on this new responsibility.”

Canadian Blood Services is a national, not-for-profit charitable organization that manages the blood supply in all provinces and territories outside of Quebec and operates the country’s Unrelated Bone Marrow Donor Registry. Canadian Blood Services operates 40 permanent collection sites and more than 10,000 donor clinics annually. For more information, please visit our Web site at www.bloodservices.ca.

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