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Al-Riyami AZ, Burnouf T, Wood EM, Devine DV, Oreh A, Apelseth TO, Goel R, Bloch EM, van Den Berg K, Getshen M, Louw V, Ang AL, Lee CK, Rahimi-Levene N, Stramer SL, Vassallo R, Schulze TJ, Patidar GK, Pandey HC, Dubey R, Badawi M, Hindawi S, Meshi A, Matsushita T, Sorrentino E, Grubovic Rastvorceva RM, Bazin R, Vermeulen M, Nahirniak S, Tsang HC, Vrielink H, Triyono T, Addas-Carvalho M, Hećimović A, Torres OW, Mutindu SM, Bengtsson J, Dominguez D, Sayedahmed A, Hanisa Musa R, Gautam B, Herczenik E, So-Osman C. International Society of Blood Transfusion survey of experiences of blood banks and transfusion services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Vox Sang 2022; 117:822-830. [PMID: 35262978 PMCID: PMC9115426 DOI: 10.1111/vox.13256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Revised: 01/23/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted blood systems worldwide. Challenges included maintaining blood supplies and initiating the collection and use of COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP). Sharing information on the challenges can help improve blood collection and utilization. MATERIALS AND METHODS A survey questionnaire was distributed to International Society of Blood Transfusion members in 95 countries. We recorded respondents' demographic information, impacts on the blood supply, CCP collection and use, transfusion demands and operational challenges. RESULTS Eighty-two responses from 42 countries, including 24 low- and middle-income countries, were analysed. Participants worked in national (26.8%) and regional (26.8%) blood establishments and hospital-based (42.7%) institutions. CCP collection and transfusion were reported by 63% and 36.6% of respondents, respectively. Decreases in blood donations occurred in 70.6% of collecting facilities. Despite safety measures and recruitment strategies, donor fear and refusal of institutions to host blood drives were major contributing factors. Almost half of respondents working at transfusion medicine services were from large hospitals with over 10,000 red cell transfusions per year, and 76.8% of those hospitals experienced blood shortages. Practices varied in accepting donors for blood or CCP donations after a history of COVID-19 infection, CCP transfusion, or vaccination. Operational challenges included loss of staff, increased workloads and delays in reagent supplies. Almost half of the institutions modified their disaster plans during the pandemic. CONCLUSION The challenges faced by blood systems during the COVID-19 pandemic highlight the need for guidance, harmonization, and strengthening of the preparedness and the capacity of blood systems against future infectious threats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arwa Z Al-Riyami
- Department of Haematology, Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
| | - Thierry Burnouf
- Graduate Institute of Biomedical Materials and Tissue Engineering, College of Biomedical Engineering, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.,International PhD Programme in Biomedical Engineering, College of Biomedical Engineering, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Erica M Wood
- Transfusion Research Unit, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Dana V Devine
- Centre for Innovation, Canadian Blood Services, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.,Centre for Blood Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Adaeze Oreh
- National Blood Service Commission, Federal Ministry of Health, Abuja, Nigeria
| | - Torunn Oveland Apelseth
- Department of Immunology and Transfusion Medicine, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
| | - Ruchikha Goel
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Division of Hematology/Oncology, Simmons Cancer Institute at SIU School of Medicine and Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center, Springfield, Illinois, USA
| | - Evan M Bloch
- Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Karin van Den Berg
- Transfusion Medicine and Technical Services Division, South African National Blood Service, Roodepoort, South Africa.,Division of Clinical Haematology, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Mahrukh Getshen
- National Blood Bank, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital, Thimphu, Bhutan
| | - Vernon Louw
- Division of Clinical Haematology, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Ai Leen Ang
- Blood Services Group, Health Sciences Authority, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Cheuk Kwong Lee
- Hong Kong Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service, Hong Kong SAR
| | | | - Susan L Stramer
- Scientific Affairs, American Red Cross, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | | | | | - Gopal Kumar Patidar
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
| | - Hem Chandra Pandey
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
| | - Rounak Dubey
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, NRI Academy of Medical Sciences, Andhra Pradesh, India
| | - Maha Badawi
- Haematology Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Salwa Hindawi
- Haematology Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdullah Meshi
- Department of Blood Bank, King Fahd Central Hospital, Jazan, Saudi Arabia
| | | | | | - Rada M Grubovic Rastvorceva
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine of RNM, Skopje, North Macedonia.,Faculty of Medical Sciences, University Goce Delcev, Štip, North Macedonia
| | - Renée Bazin
- Medical Affairs and Innovation, Héma-Québec, Québec, Canada
| | - Marion Vermeulen
- Transfusion Medicine and Technical Services Division, South African National Blood Service, Roodepoort, South Africa
| | - Susan Nahirniak
- Transfusion and Transplantation Medicine, Alberta Precision Laboratories, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | | | - Hans Vrielink
- Unit Transfusion Medicine, Sanquin Blood Supply Foundation, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Teguh Triyono
- Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Gadjah Mada/Dr Sardjito Hospital, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
| | | | - Ana Hećimović
- Croatian Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Oscar W Torres
- Transfusion Medicine Service, Hospital Churruca, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Samclide M Mutindu
- Unit of Transfusion Medicine, Centre Hospitalier Monkole, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
| | - Jesper Bengtsson
- Department of Clinical Immunology and Transfusion Medicine, University and Regional Laboratories, Lund, Sweden
| | - Diego Dominguez
- Centro Regional de Hemoterapia, Hospital Zonal Caleta Olivia, Caleta Olivia, Argentina
| | - Ahmed Sayedahmed
- Omdurman Islamic University/National Central Laboratory, Khartoum, Sudan
| | - Rozi Hanisa Musa
- Clinical Transfusion, National Immunohematology Reference Laboratory, National Blood Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | | | | | - Cynthia So-Osman
- Unit Transfusion Medicine, Sanquin Blood Supply Foundation, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.,Department of Haematology, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
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