Background:
- Blood transfusions are essential to patient care, and are widely used to treat anemia, due to bleeding conditions, or chronic diseases
- But there are real concerns related to the supply and safety of blood
- Suboptimal clinical practices compromise patient safety and make inappropriate use of the already scarce blood products available
- One reason identified is lack of implementation of Patient Blood Management
- Patient Blood Management (PBM) is a multidisciplinary, evidence-based approach to optimising the care of patients who might need a blood transfusion
The approach to the World Health Organisation global implementation policy brief around seven modules:
- What is PBM
- Who will benefit from PBM
- Why the urgent need for PBM
- Who should take the lead and act
- How do we develop regional PBM implementation strategies
- How to use a versatile PBM toolbox to build different regional programs, and
- How to align PBM with patient empowerment shared decision-making and informed consent
WHO:
WHA63.12 adopted by resolution May 21, 2010:
“Bearing in mind that patient blood management means that before surgery every reasonable measure should be taken to optimize the patient’s own blood volume, to minimize the patient’s blood loss and to harness and optimize the patient-specific physiological tolerance of anemia following WHO’s guide for optimal clinical use (three pillars of patient blood management)”
In 2021, the Secretariat published educational modules on clinical use of blood and a policy brief on the urgent need to implement patient blood management. Technical guidance on the implementation of patient blood management is being prepared, which will guide countries implementing such programmes.
