Reports from NHS Blood and Transplant Highlight Recent Findings in Emergency Preparedness (Emergency preparedness, resilience and response guidance for UK hospital transfusion teams)

2020 FEB 14 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Blood Daily News -- A new study on Homeland Security - Emergency Preparedness is now available. According to news reporting originating from Birmingham, United Kingdom, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “To present Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR) guidance for Hospital Transfusion Teams on behalf of the National Blood Transfusion Committee emergency planning working group. The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 requires healthcare organisations to demonstrate that they can deal with major incidents while maintaining critical services.”

Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from NHS Blood and Transplant, “Recent mass casualty events and the use of transfusion-based resuscitation have highlighted the evolving role of the Hospital Transfusion Team. This multi-disciplinary advice is informed by recent global and national experience, the 2018 NHS England clinical guidelines for Major Incidents, and stakeholder workshops. Transfusion staff should be familiar with local EPRR plans including casualty type and numbers. Staff should be exercised as part of wider Trust preparation, with documented roles and responsibilities. Transfusion support should be proactive and include blood issue, regulatory compliance and sample handling. Robust LIMS-compatible emergency identification systems are essential to minimise errors. Emergency stock management requires rapid assessment of existing stock and estimated demand before re-ordering. Initial demand should be based on 2 to 4 red blood cells (RBC) per patient admitted. Patients with significant haemorrhage may require further red cells and early haemostatic support. Where ‘universal’ components are demanded, they should be gender appropriate. Senior staff should lead the response, log and communicate key decisions, and prepare for post-incident recovery. Transfusion teams have an important role in ensuring continuity of transfusion support. Teams should develop their EPRR plans based on local plans and national guidance.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Emergency preparedness should include post-incident debriefing for ongoing staff support and future service improvement.”

For more information on this research see: Emergency preparedness, resilience and response guidance for UK hospital transfusion teams. Transfusion Medicine, 2020;():. Transfusion Medicine can be contacted at: Blackwell Publishing Inc, 350 Main St, Malden, MA 02148, USA. (Wiley-Blackwell - http://www.wiley.com/; Transfusion Medicine - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1365-3148)

The news editors report that additional information may be obtained by contacting F. Chowdhury, NHS Blood and Transplant, Clinical Services, Birmingham, UK.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1111/tme.12665. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

Publisher contact information for the journal Transfusion Medicine is: Blackwell Publishing Inc, 350 Main St, Malden, MA 02148, USA.

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