Guidelines for hospital transfusion committees

Abstract

The establishment of hospital transfusion committees has been considered an integral part of good blood transfusion practice for many years and can encourage a team approach engaging clinicians and laboratory staff in a process of changing blood transfusion practices, implementing best practice and change in outdated clinical beliefs at hospital level. They are recognized worldwide as multidisciplinary, hospital wide groups established with a purpose of integrating hospital components involved in the transfusion process. Within transfusion committees, everyone is encouraged to become involved in making and changing policy dependent on open and active debate at regular HTC meetings. HTCs are a focal point for delivery of quality assurance infrastructure for blood transfusion and are necessary for organizing training, conducting audit of blood transfusion and regular monitoring of blood transfusion practice for a given hospital.