Transfusion
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In 2005, The Joint Commission set about assessing the need for performance measures associated with the provision of blood products. Through a rigorous process, seven patient blood management performance measures were created. These measures incorporated a measure requiring transfusion consent; three measures requiring the combination of a laboratory value and a rationale for transfusion of plasma, platelets, or red blood cells; a measure requiring standard documentation about a transfusion; a measure evaluating preoperative anemia screening; and a measure of preoperative type screening and antibody testing before the start of major blood loss surgery. This article describes the process of this measure development and summarizes the final measures and some of the evidence supporting the measures.
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Blood transfusion is the most common procedure performed in American hospitals, and transfusions are commonly ordered by physicians without formal training in transfusion medicine. Several transfusion medicine curricula have been proposed, including those developed through the Transfusion Medicine Academic Awards (TMAA). To our knowledge, no comprehensive study has assessed how transfusion medicine is incorporated into undergraduate medical education. ⋯ Transfusion medicine content in American undergraduate medical education is variable and the influence of the TMAA program on contemporary medical school curricula is questionable. Future efforts in this area should focus on standardizing and improving undergraduate medical education in transfusion medicine.