November 6-10 is the Society for the Advancement of Blood Management’s Patient Blood Management Awareness Week, and the society would like to encourage all to share the knowledge and resources of patient blood management (PBM). Our goal at WSHA is to help hospitals with implementing and sustaining evidence-based PBM best practices. WSHA does this through our work with the Patient Blood Management Initiative, which is the first of its kind at a statewide level.
WSHA also offers collaborative learning opportunities such as the Patient Blood Management Safe Table Learning Collaborative December 5 at the Conference Center at Seatac, where such speakers — as Bloodworks Northwest President and CEO Dr. Jim AuBuchon — will share their experiences and lessons learned regarding PBM. Contact Anjelica Armendariz at anjelicaa@wsha.org or Tamara Glover at tamarag@wsha.org for more information or to register for the safe table.
PBM an evidence-based, multidisciplinary approach to optimizing the care of patients who might need transfusion. PBM can reduce the need for allogeneic blood transfusions and reduce health care costs while ensuring that blood components are available for the patients who need them. PBM encompasses all aspects of patient evaluation and clinical management surrounding the transfusion decision-making process, including the application of appropriate indications, as well as minimization of blood loss and optimization of patient red cell mass. (Tamara Glover)