ISBT 2022

Senior Director of Medical Affairs

Global Indication Lead, Donor Screening

Roche Diagnostics Solutions

Dr. Galel received her MD degree from Harvard Medical School, and completed clinical training in pediatrics, pediatric hematology/oncology, and transfusion medicine at Stanford University.  Following her training she was hired onto the faculty of the Stanford University School of Medicine where she served for many years as medical director of the blood donor center and donor testing laboratory, and as associate director of the Stanford Hospital transfusion service.  Dr. Galel joined Roche Diagnostics in 2014 and continues as an emeritus faculty of Stanford University.  Dr. Galel has authored numerous manuscripts and book chapters on transfusion medicine and donor infectious disease screening.  Dr. Galel is an active member of the AABB where she has served on the Transfusion-Transmitted Diseases Committee and Blood Banks and Transfusion Services Standards Committee, and she is a member of the ISBT working party for Transfusion Transmitted Infectious Diseases. Dr. Galel also serves as a member of the US Health and Human Services Advisory Committee on Blood and Tissue Safety and Availability.

Laboratory Organisation Assistant

Austrian Red Cross, Blood Donation Center

Charlotte Pistorius is currently employed as Laboratory Organisation Assistant at the Austrian Red Cross, Blood Donation Center in Austria.  Previously, Ms. Pistorius was Manager of Transfusion Virology at Western Cape Blood Services, South Africa. She has numerous years of experience in blood donor screening, in both serologic and molecular testing. Ms. Pistorius earned her Master of Science Degree in Medical Virology at Stellenbosch University. She has presented at ISBT, AABB, and at the South African National Blood Transfusion Congress. Charlotte is the first author on the publication, “Mathematical Model to Assess Potential Reduced Specificity When Switching to New Screening Assays at Blood Donation Center”. 

Associate Director of Process Development

Transmissible Diseases at Canadian Blood Services

Mr. Gordon Hawes has been the Associate Director of Process Development, Transmissible Diseases at Canadian Blood Services since 2006. In this role, Mr. Hawes leads the implementation and support of new testing platforms for transfusion-transmitted diseases. Mr. Hawes has more than thirty years of experience in transmissible diseases and laboratory science, working at different roles including manager and Head Technologist in the Virology laboratories at the Ministry of Health Laboratory Services for Ontario, Canada.

Mr. Pieksma worked in one of the blood banks in the Netherlands before the blood banks merged into what is now Sanquin. From there he continued in a long career in the diagnostic industry specializing in blood banks, starting from Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics in serology testing and Immunohematology, then, Roche Diagnostics in molecular testing, launching the cobas s 201 System in EMEA & LATAM, Later to Immucor in immunohematology, and back to Roche Diagnostics where he is a member of the global Roche Blood Safety Solution team.