September

Minutes of the 46th meeting

Held in the Board Room at 4045 Côte-Vertu Boulevard, St-Laurent, Wednesday, September 10, 2003, at 2:00 p.m

Present:
Mr. Raymond April
Mr. Robert Bédard
Ms. Sheila Comerford
Dr. Denis Cournoyer
Dr. Francine Décary
Dr. Marc Dionne
Dr. Jean Montreuil
Mr. Claude Pichette
Dr. Lucie Poitras
Ms. Cheryl Campbell Steer
Dr. Yves St-Pierre

Absent:
Dr. André Lebrun

Hemovigilance Committee observer:
Mr. Jean-Guy Lorrain

Guests:
Mr. Jacques Blais, Director, Marketing
Ms. Sylvie Daigneault, Manager, Direct Marketing
Mr. Marco Décelles, Director, Accounting
Dr. Gilles Delage, Senior Director, Medical Affairs
Me Smaranda Ghibu, General Counsel
Ms. Suzanne Poirier, Meeting Assistant

1. Call to order
Mr. Claude Pichette acted as meeting chairperson. He welcomed the members present. Quorum was established, and the meeting was called to order at 2:00 p.m.

2. Presentation of Héma-Québec’s advertising campaign (2003–2005)
The Director, Marketing, and the Manager, Direct Marketing, joined the meeting.

The Director, Marketing, and the Manager, Direct Marketing, presented the 2003–2005 advertising campaign to the Board members. The radio, television and poster components were presented. The radio and television components of this campaign are intended to highlight the donor’s gesture, joining the donor and the recipient in a fictitious manner. The poster campaign is intended to inform the public of the blood donation by provided a few related statistics.

The members said they were satisfied with this new campaign and thanked the Marketing Department for this presentation.

The Director, Marketing, and the Manager, Direct Marketing, left the meeting.

3. Adoption of the agenda
Motion to approve the agenda, with the following additions:
15.2 Visit by Dr. Couillard, Minister of Health and Social Services
15.3 Reintegration of a donor
15.4 vCJD consensus conference report
Seconded. Adopted unanimously.

4. Adoption of the minutes of the 45th meeting, held on June 18, 2003
Motion to adopt the minutes of the 45th meeting of the Board, held on June 18, 2003, as read. Seconded. Adopted unanimously.

4.1. Executive Committee meeting of August 14, 2003—Approval of the PBDE project
The draft minutes for the Executive Committee meeting held on August 14, 2003, was presented to the members for information purposes.

5. Unfinished business from the 45th meeting
5.1. Report on collective agreement negotiations in Quebec City and Montréal: update
The Executive Director presented an up-to-date summary of the collective agreement negotiations.

Quebec City
Negotiations are continuing with the Syndicat professionelle des infirmières et infirmiers de Québec (SPIIQ). They are being handled by members of the labour relations and operations team. Several meetings are scheduled with the union for September. Héma-Québec would like to reach an agreement in principle by mid-October.

Montréal
Collective agreements have been signed with the Syndicat des assistants(tes) techniques de laboratoire d’Héma-Québec (CSN) on June 23, 2003, with the Union professionnelle des infirmières et infirmiers du Québec, on July 14, 2003, and with the Syndicat des techniciens(nes) de laboratoire d’Héma-Québec (CSN), on September 5, 2003. With respect to the Syndicat des travailleuses et travailleurs d’Héma-Québec (CSN), a few items remain to be finalized. A meeting is scheduled with this union for September 16, 2003 and, in the event that the parties agree, the collective agreement could be signed shortly after that.

5.2. West Nile virus: update
The Executive Director reported on the latest developments with respect to the West Nile Virus (WNV).

As planned, the screening test developed by Héma-Québec’s R&D Division was implemented on June 18, 2003, while the Roche test was implemented on June 26, 2003. Since that time, more than 50,000 donors have been tested. No positive results have been obtained to date.

Héma-Québec started distributing the frozen components obtained before the 2003 WNV season (January to June) on July 28, 2003. This decision was based on the increased activity of the WNV in mosquitoes. The frozen components obtained after the anti-HBc test was implemented are being distributed to hospitals while the frozen components obtained before this safety measure was implemented will be sent to Bayer to be transformed into stable products.

Moreover, after implementing the question asking donors about WNV symptoms, Héma-Québec observed a very low deferral rate (12 donors in July).

The Senior Director, Medical Affairs, submitted the scientific data collected in recent months concerning the estimated sensitivity of the screening test, which is 90%. However, this is a preliminary estimate that should be confirmed by additional data.

The Senior Director, Medical Affairs, first discussed the issue of testing each individual donation for WNV. Certain centres in the United States and Canadian Blood Services (CBS) in Saskatchewan have started individual testing as a result of a high rate of positive results (1/500). Considering the epidemiological situation of Québec, the potential shortage of screening kits if everyone converts to individual testing and the high efficiency rate of the Roche test, he is of the opinion that pooled screening, as currently used by Héma-Québec, is adequate for the situation in Quebec. Nevertheless, all of this data should be re-evaluated for the next summer.

Power failure in Ontario
The Executive Director stated that Héma-Québec sent CBS 450 labile products during the power failure that occurred in Ontario on August 14, 2003. The CBS greatly appreciated this gesture.

5.3. Regional public meetings
A pilot project is being prepared for a new format for the public meetings of the Board of Directors. A draft procedure for these meetings has been transmitted to the members for information. A list assigning the Board members to these meetings was distributed during the meeting.

The pilot project will take place in three cities in Québec at the start of 2004. These meetings will be re-evaluated at the end of the pilot project, in June 2004. FD

5.4. General and professional liability insurance coverage: response from RBC Royal Bank
Closed discussions.

6. Management report as at June 30, 2003
The Director, Accounting, joined the meeting.

The table of budget variances shows a positive variance of $3,773,061 for the labile net total and a positive variance of $9,033,529 for the stable total.

The cash flow situation was presented. As at March 31, 2003, a sum of almost $5,000,000 was taken from the line of credit. Nevertheless, during the first quarter of 2003–2004, Héma-Québec had to use its line of credit only for a few days, namely in April 2003. Since then the cash flow has been positive.

Following a request from the Premier’s office, the Secrétariat du sang asked Héma-Québec to identify potential savings for 2003–2004. Héma-Québec informed the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS) of substantial savings due, in large part, to the exchange rate. In order to justify the savings announced, Héma-Québec will inform the MSSS about the actions it has taken to free up these sums. The Director, Accounting, left the meeting.

7. 2002–2003 demographic report
The Executive Director reviewed the 2002–2003 demographic report. In particular, she commented on the statistical tables.

The members asked if the age breakdown for the donors was the same as for last year. Follow-up will be provided at the meeting of December 17, 2003.

So that additional questions from the Board members can be answered, this item will be included in the agenda for the meeting to be held on December 17, 2003.

8. Closed discussions
8.1. Work conditions and salary of the Executive Director
8.2. Change in the title of the Executive Director
Considering the confidential nature of this discussion, the Chairperson asked it to be closed.

The Executive Director and guests left the meeting.

9. Final report of the Serum Bank Sample project
The Senior Director, Medical Affairs, joined the meeting. He also made certain clarifications concerning Item 5.2.

When it purchased the assets of the Canadian Red Cross Society on September 28, 1998, Héma-Québec acquired samples conserved in the serum bank. These samples correspond to donations made between 1988 and 1992.

In November 1998, the Board of Directors decided that Héma-Québec would test all the samples in the serum bank for hepatitis C in order to notify any donors who tested positive and those who received products made from those donations.

The Senior Director, Medical Affairs, presented the final report for the project and commented on some of the results for the 164,401 samples tested. The percentage of positive results for all of the samples was approximately 0.4829% (0.39% before the first generation test and 0.09% after).

Of the 392 positive donors notified, 105 donors learned that they were carrying the virus as a result of Héma-Québec’s test. Most of the recipients were located. More than two thirds of them had died. However, it is reasonable to believe that the vast majority of these recipients died as a result of a primary disease since hepatitis C rarely results in death during the first decade after contamination.

The cost of the project was estimated at $4,000,000, but it actually cost $1,738,866 as a result of the smaller number of samples tested.

The members said they were satisfied since the project attained its goal, namely to notify those who were unaware that they carried hepatitis C.

The Senior Director, Medical Affairs, left the meeting.

10. Fifth anniversary of Héma-Québec
Héma-Québec will celebrate its fifth anniversary on September 28, 2003.

The Executive Director presented the scenario retained:

• A placard announcing the fifth anniversary will be placed at the entrance to Héma-Québec facilities;
• A special message about the anniversary will be sent to the employees;
• A small cake, bearing the Héma-Québec logo and sponsored by Weston, will be distributed to the employees;
• A thank-you message addressed to donors and volunteers will be published in the newspapers.

The members expressed their satisfaction.

11. Risk management
11.1. Pathogens under surveillance: update
The report of the pathogens under surveillance, which was updated September 3, 2003, was tabled for information purposes. Board members noted the updates made to this report since the last meeting. A new pathogen was added to the list: monkey pox.

With a view to risk management and despite the fact that it is not a pathogen, the Management Committee focussed on levels of lead in blood. This concern arose following an article published in Lancet on July 26, 2003. Héma-Québec, in cooperation with the Institut national de la santé publique, will develop a protocol for measuring levels of lead in donors in order to determine if this could constitute a risk for newborn recipients and take the necessary measures, as needed.

The Executive Director informed members that risk management is a statutory point for the Héma-Québec Management Committee.

11.2. Risk management policy
The risk management policy revised by the Board of Directors on June 18, 2003, was tabled for information purposes.

12. Tabling of the revised version of Héma-Québec’s vision
The Héma-Québec mission statement revised by the Board of Directors was tabled.

Motion to approve Héma-Québec’s mission with the modification requested. Second. Adopted unanimously.

13. Ongoing projects, 2003–2004
The Executive Director presented a list of the ongoing projects for 2003–2004 and the details are appended.

14. Committee report

• Audit Committee
  The Chairperson of the Audit Committee summarized the principal items discussed at the Audit Committee meeting held during the morning:

1. A first draft of the major budgetary hypotheses was tabled and the budget process started;
2. The results of the survey on the salary controls will be tabled at the Audit Committee meeting to be held on December 17, 2003;
3. The members of the Audit Committee will hold a conference call in October 2003 to discuss the new rules that govern Audit Committees. The purpose is to define the modifications to Audit Committee mandates or practices. A report will be submitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Directors;
4. As a result of recent market disturbances and given our high level of risk, the policy on the exchange rate will be established in a formal manner and revised at a subsequent meeting of the Board of Directors.

15. Varia
15.1. Tabling of a schedule of the 2003–2004 meetings of the Board of Directors
The schedule of the 2003–2004 meetings of the Board of Directors was tabled.

Motion to approve the schedule of the 2003–2004 meetings of the Board of Directors, with the change made to the meeting of November 5, 2003. Seconded. Adopted unanimously.

The meting scheduled for November 5, 2003, will start at 8:00 a.m. so that Héma-Québec’s senior directors can present their respective 2004–2005 budgets.

15.2. Visit by Dr. Couillard, Minister of Health and Social Services
On September 25, 2003, Dr. Couillard, Minister of Health and Social Services, will visit the Montréal facility. A visit to the laboratories and a presentation on safety measures are also scheduled.

15.3. Reintegration of a donor
This donor was rejected because he came in dressed as a woman and asked to be registered under a name that was not his own. Recently, this donor settled the situation with respect to his name. As a result, there are no legal reasons for refusing him as a donor. Moreover, if he qualifies as a donor, no regulations would prevent his acceptance.

For this reason, the Senior Director, Medical Affairs, will meet with the donor and inform him about Héma-Québec’s decision as well as the conditions attached to it, namely that his donation must not be used as a platform to promote his personal cause. It is agreed that, if this were to be the case, he will not be accepted as a donor. The members agree with this approach. FD/GD

15.4. Reports on the vCJD consensus conference
The report on the vCJD consensus conference, dated September 2, 2003, was tabled for information purposes.

A new consensus conference on TRALI is scheduled for March 2004.

16. Next meeting
The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, June 18, 2003, at 8:00 a.m. at Auberge Saint-Antoine, Quebec City.

17. Adjournment
Unanimous decision to adjourn the meeting at 6:00 p.m.