Transfusing blood safely and appropriately

Assoicate Professor Erica Wood, in collaboration with colleagues from The University of Oxford and University of Pittsburgh, published an invited Review in last week’s BMJ, focusing on best practice for blood transfusing safely and appropriately.

Blood transfusion is an essential part of modern healthcare and can be life saving when used appropriately.  Blood services worldwide strive to provide a safe supply and work with

hospitals to ensure that blood products are readily available for patients.

The process of getting a unit of blood from a donor to a patient is complex. Many steps are taken to ensure that the transfusion is as safe as possible. Although serious complications of blood transfusion are uncommon, patients should be transfused using evidence based guidelines to minimise any adverse effects and ensure that blood products are used appropriately.

The aim of this review was to describe best practices for the safety of patients receiving blood transfusions, including ways to reduce unnecessary transfusions.  In the short time since its publication, their article has been accessed almost 2,000 times.