Blood Bank Guy Essentials Podcast

In the 2+ years I've been doing this podcast, more people have asked, "when are you doing ABO discrepancies?" than any other topic. Well, here you go! Let's learn the essentials with Dr. Nicole Draper, who loves ABO discrepancies! See www.BBGuy.org/054 for the visual part. 

Alloimmunization has been a mystery for decades, but Chris Tormey has new answers for why patients make antibodies that we wish they didn't! NOTE: CE credit has expired for this episode.

Aryeh Shander, a recognized expert in patient blood management and transfusion practices, shares crucial insights on preoperative anemia. He discusses the evolution of patient blood management, advocating for addressing anemia's causes rather than defaulting to transfusions. Shander emphasizes the significant risks preoperative anemia poses to surgical patients and critiques traditional transfusion practices. He highlights the importance of timely screenings and the benefits of intravenous iron therapy, aiming to improve surgical outcomes through effective anemia management.

In episode 050CE, Sue Johnson outlined sample requirements and antibody detection testing. Now, the knowledge bomb continues as she helps us understand how to choose compatible blood products and TEST (crossmatch) them to make sure they are compatible. Sue finishes the job by solving six cases illustrating common challenges in compatibility testing.

Continuing education episode! To those less familiar with testing and processes in blood banks, the process of Pretransfusion Testing can feel confusing and intimidating. There are tons of rules, and we feel compelled to hold everyone and everything involved to a VERY high standard! Sue Johnson returns to the podcast in part 1 of a discussion of the first two steps in pretransfusion testing, and she will help you understand the "why" behind the tests.  NOTE: CE credit has expired for this episode.

Continuing education episode! When a patient has TOO MUCH of a good thing, transfusion medicine professionals must sometimes step in and assist in removing red cells, plasma, and/or platelets. Dr. Jeff Winters will help you understand why YOU need to know about these procedures, even if you are not directly involved in therapeutic cytapheresis in your facility. This episode is eligible for FREE CME and SAMs/CC credit for physicians and P.A.C.E. contact hours for laboratorians through Transfusion News Continuing Education on Wiley Health Learning.

Major surgeries with no blood, for both Jehovah's Witnesses and others? Post-operative patients who don't need transfusion because of massive blood draws? These things are not only possible, they are happening right now, and Dr. Steve Frank, Medical Director of the Johns Hopkins Bloodless Medicine Program, is here to discuss the essentials of patient blood management carried to the extreme!

Cytomegalovirus can cause all kinds of problems in susceptible transfusion recipients, but even an AABB Expert Panel couldn't say exactly how to make blood "CMV-safe!" John Roback was senior author the committee report, and he's here to clear the air...maybe! NOTE: CE credit has expired for this episode.

Every two years, like it or not, our friends at the AABB issue a brand-new version of their Standards for Blood Banks and Transfusion Services (though we usually just call it “Standards” for short). The 31st edition goes live on April 1, 2018, and it contains a number of important changes. Pat Ooley, Chair of the Blood Bank Transfusion Service Standards Committee, joins me to share his “Top 5 Changes” you need to understand and implement. Pat also takes some time to help us understand the role of this publication that impacts hundreds and hundreds of transfusion and donor facilities in the US and a few international countries. He also walks us through the entire process on how new and revised Standards come into existence.

In his nearly 45 years at the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Harvey Klein has been at the center of a mountain of uproars, crises, and changes in transfusion medicine. He's got tons of fascinating stories and opinions, and he's here to share the "Past, Present, & Future of Transfusion Medicine." Don't miss it!