jcdayaz

Hmm, no not with us. We are Provue/Gel users also. I have not noticed any recent increase with "issues".

I second Malcolm's entire statement!!!

Is this the Debbie McCaskill I used to work for in Shreveport, LA????

Here's a real "Just for Fun" one.... I worked second shift in a hospital Blood Bank for 8 years. I was the only blood banker on this shift. I could get some help from non-blood bankers if I needed it. This was in a large transplant hospital for a region of 4 states in the US. To get to the story....I was working a liver transplant one night and after around 50-75 units of products ordered I was getting overwhelmed. Duh, when it goes bad it GOES BAD!! Anyway, our floater (limited blood bank experience) returned from his dinner break I told him immediately I needed help right NOW!! He was eating a popsicle upon his entry into the lab. After I told him I needed his help right now he put his popsicle in the FFP freezer. (Don't tell anyone). After the crisis situation was over he took his popsicle out of the FFP freezer and placed it directly on his tongue!! Well, guess what happened??? Yep, it STUCK THERE!!! We eventually got it off....but there was blood involved!!!! Even warm water wouldn't loosen the popsicle.!!!!!

There are many days I have considered "throwing in the towel". It seems sometimes we continually beat our heads against the proverbial brick wall and make no progress whatsoever!! I must confess, however to being saved by the number of times I have aided in saving a peron's life. There is no better feeling for me, and I am assuming all of us, than to know you made a difference.

Patient outcome?? Those are some VERY serious antibodies....which you don't need me to tell you. This story sounds bad, VERY bad for the patient!!!!!

Tee Hee! You are, unfortunately, probably correct!! Perhaps I should take a box of crayons to work!! UUUGGHHH! It is a wonder that ANY patient actually makes it out of the hospital...I have always told everyone I know that if they have a loved-one in the hospital for any reason to make sure someone is there with them 24/7 to verify EVERYTHING being done....IV solutions, medications, etc etc. It is a crying shame to be so paranoid, I know, but I have have seen so much stupidity that I guess it has warped me! As a matter of fact, I just was reminded of my first HORROR STORY!!! When I was a brand new Tech out of college, I got a night-shift job at a fairly small hospital...around 250 beds. I made friends with a lot of the other staff. One nurse friend of mine called me in the lab one night and said "I just hung some saline on a patient of mine. They are no longer acting right. What should I do?" After I picked myself up off the floor, I told her to immediately stop whatever it was she was infusing. I then went to the patient's room and found that she had not hung saline...she had hung a huge bag of POTASSIUM!!!! Needless to say she was no longer affiliated with the hospital and we were no longer friends. SCARY, TO SAY THE LEAST!!!!!!

You just have to love these questions. I got a good one the other day....a phone call from a nurse, RN no doubt, asking how to collect a specimen for blood bank testing. I explained the armband procedure, what needed to be written on it, how that armband was to be affixed to the tube, etc etc. She was obviously still puzzled after my explanation. She then said "Yeah, I know about the armband stuff, but how do I draw it?" I had to tell her the same way she collects blood for any other test!!! Is there a different way to draw blood of which I am unaware????

Wouldn't it be nice to actually be able to "wash the antigens off the cells??"!!! That would certainly save us ALL a lot of time. Of course it seems to me that ability (if it were actually factual...which we all know it is not) could potentially turn blood banking into something mundane like Chemistry....UUUGGGHHHH.

One of my favorites when someone is complaining...ie whining...is to ask them "Would you like cheese with that wine??" It seems to have the same effect as your husband's method.

TOO FUNNY and so TRUE!!!! I come from Arkansas originally, so I know a bit about "Bubba's". :D:D:D

Sorry Malcolm...no disrespect intended here.....but I concur with adiescast's statement of "This is new how?" HaHaHaHaHa!!!!:D:D:D:D:D:D:D I warned you that it seems we have a similar sense of humor!!!!!!

We transfuse ONLY Type O Rh neg, CMV neg, Irradiated blood to our neonates. My current hospital doesn't treat children in the 3 yr old age range(typically). I do remember, however from the Children's Hospital I worked in previously to this one, that we would have NEVER switched a child to Rh pos. As in previous posts...they have a life time ahead of them to live. What happens X-number of years down the road when they might have some sort of trauma situation and your blood bank is running low on O negs????? Not something I would want to take the risk on.... That being said..I would not allow a patient to die in any circumstance. If you have a child who needs blood (true need) and you have no O neg stock then obviously you have to go to O pos.

HaHaHaHa!!!!! You gotta love the STAT CULTURES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D:D:D

HaHaHaHa!!!!!!! We SO have the same sense of humor!!!!!!:D:D:D:D:D:D

OOPPPSSS...I believe I missed the mark here...Wasn't it breakfast we allegedly had together????:confused: I find this thread immensely funny!!!!! Don't we live in different countries??!!

NICE MALCOLM Sorry you were having health issues...but your interaction with the MD sounds priceless!!!!!!!!! They ALL need to be put in their places from time to time.

I am just wondering what the rationale is on needing to obtain a negative antibody screen prior to FFP administration?? If the recipient does indeed have an antibody it most certainly will not react with the FFP to be transfused (excluding anti IgA, of course).

Hey John! When are we having lunch again???;):D:D:D:D:D:cool: Sorry, I couldn't resist.........

Very true. You won't detect a potential problem with anti-IgA from a type and screen result. My understanding is the only way (in most cases) it is discovered is during an attempt to transfuse a plasma based product and the patient almost instantly crashes. I can remember one instance of a patient almost immediately going into anaphylatic shock after an FFP unit was trying to be transfused!!!:eek: I agree with you and John. I would still prefer at least an ABO/Rh per hospital admission for FFP. Platelets and cryo we give non typespecific anyway (in most circumstances)...so I don't see the need for any testing for those orders.

You should consider yourself lucky!! I've had to deal with emergency release requests for blood and FFP even before the patient arrives at the ER. We just issue O neg blood and AB plasma in a cooler in these circumstances. The FFP emergency release is fairly infrequent....but it does happen!:mad:

I agree with your statement here. I have been involved in two instances of a patient trying to use someone else's insurance info. Guess what? Different blood types!!! SCARY THOUGHT!!! It seems in the last 10 years or so hospitals have started doing a MUCH better job at requiring proper ID on a patient. However, I would not think in an emergent situation proper care could be refused due to lack of ID. So your suggestion, in my opinion, is a GOOD one!!!

I agree with Malcolm...HMMMM....:mad: I have heard of doing cell separations in capillary tubes for the purpose of antigen typing a recently transfused person. BUT....I'm not too sure about the "capillary test" to distinguish IgM from IgG antibodies!!! I am interested to hear the research you might have done to verify this statement made by your reference lab.....

Oh Malcolm....NOT FUNNY!!! Although I will say you seem to have my sense of humor!!

Okay Malcolm....see what you have started yet again???!!!!:) Yes, he was annoyed.....you know what he does for a living!! They (supposedly) are "ABOVE" us in their status in this world....(Sorry, I'm irritated at the moment...):mad::mad: