Blood Bank Automation

[AMcCord]

We installed ECHO the same week as bpkelly. So far, so good!

[n.peters]

For those of you using the ECHO or PRovue already what do you use for a manual back up method? Are you doing panels on the ECHO?

[Likewine99]

We use ProVue, back it up with manual gel at the bench. We do panels on the PV and have had great luck with it. Live 2 years this May, will be interfacing to HCLL after our Sept go-live.

[krichards]

We are using the Echo. We also have a manual workstation that uses that Capture strips used on the Echos. We have not yet set up this manual station, but plan to in the next few weeks. We are also keeping all of our tube testing reagents for those situations where the capture technology does not suffice. We have eliminated all our gel reagents and cards due to the cost and additional equipment required.

We do almost all of our antibody identifications on the Echos as well, and our techs are loving how much of the workups are now hands-off.

[John C. Staley]

We are using the Echo and our manual backup is Tube/PEG. Most of our panels are being run on the Echo.

[n.peters]

We are using the Echo and our manual backup is Tube/PEG. Most of our panels are being run on the Echo.

How do you keep people competent on the tube method when they do not do it very often. We are doing tube/PEG at our facility as our main method and I have noticed huge variations in reactions grading between days(dedicated blood bankers) and evenings/nights(gerneralists). If you have gerneralist do they do antibody workups? My facility has historically not required the evenings/nights to do antibody workups when they may be complex. The problem is now I have people having a hard time doing any workup, even simple ones.

[krichards]

Because we still do some tube testing, we still subscribe to the manual J-series CAP, which is rotated among all techs. We also purchase Tech-Cheks from Immucor which contain simple antibody workups, ABO discrepancies, etc. These are also rotated among all techs, so that each tech receives a minumum of 2 Tech-Cheks and 1 or 2 CAP samples yearly. This provides each tech with an opportunity to prove competency on a regular basis. Of course another, more inexpensive, option would be to provide your generalist techs with samples you make up in-house for competency purposes.

[John C. Staley]

Ditto on what KRichards just said. Also, only about 80 - 85% of our antibody screens are currently automated for one reason on another so the staff still gets plenty of practice with tubes and peg.

We are staffed 24/7 by blood bankers but there is still a variability from tech to tech on how they read their tubes. That is one of the biggest advantages to automation, every test is read the same. Until a year ago we had generalists who covered the entire lab to include transfusion services on the night shift. They were expected to do at least an attempted antibody ID when they found a positive antibody screen and they did very well for the most part. They are MTs and CLS, they know how to do it, they just need the practice to stay confident. Also, any tech working for me has full authority to refer any testing to the local IRL for help. Just for point of reference the local IRL is about 50 miles away.

[KECIA]

I am interested in automation for a transfusion and blood bank service.

We currently are tube typing.

Does anyone use the Ortho Provue?

Hi, I use the provue at my 2nd job. I think it works well for places that don't have a dedicated staff and also it does work well in large transfusion services but the key is to have a process in place so that the work can flow smoothly.