• Canada’s “Tainted Blood” Inquiry
    Awake!—1995 | June 8

    • Happy Contrast

      In contrast with the disheartening evidence, a happier account was put before Justice Krever on May 25, 1994, in Regina, Saskatchewan. William J. Hall, a 75-​year-​old man with severe hemophilia, told how he successfully manages his condition using alternatives to blood products. And he does not have AIDS. As one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mr. Hall has avoided blood and blood factors because of his religious conscience.​—See box on page 22.

  • Canada’s “Tainted Blood” Inquiry
    Awake!—1995 | June 8

    • [Box on page 22]

      HEMOPHILIA MANAGED WITHOUT BLOOD

      William J. Hall of Nipawin, Saskatchewan, told the commission how and why he manages his severe hemophilia without blood products. Here are excerpts from the court transcript of his testimony:

      ◻ “My parents became aware that I was a hemophiliac when I swelled up from my toe to hip one time, and the doctors diagnosed it as hemophilia. . . . I would guess I was about one year old.”

      ◻ “I have never taken blood or any blood product of any kind. . . . It is against my religious beliefs to take blood because I feel it is sacred.”

      ◻ About his brother who also had hemophilia: “He didn’t have the same faith [religion] as I have, so he took a blood transfusion and he died from hepatitis.”

      ◻ For a duodenal ulcer in 1962: “The doctor said that, if I didn’t use blood, I would die. . . . I was treated fine [without blood] in the hospital.” The bleeding was brought under control.

      ◻ Regarding surgery in 1971 to pin a broken hip: “It was just a careful operation without blood. . . . The operation was successful.” Repeated blood tests at the time found no Factor VIII (clotting factor) present in his blood.

      ◻ How he manages: “Lifestyle . . . , being careful.” He includes diet, rest, exercise, and careful treatment of swellings, bruises, and bleeds.

      ◻ “I believe in relaxation and to meditate on the good things that our God has supplied us with and forget about our worries. This seems to help a lot.”

      William Hall is 76 years old and is one of Jehovah’s Witnesses.