What's New - December 2012 (By topic)

Also see What's new - chronological | What's new - Archives

Index: TraQ & BC PBCO | Global News | Diseases | Industry News | Resource Library | Journals

Collaborating Sites: CSTM | Canada's TSOs | California Blood Bank Society

TraQ & BC PBCO:

Transfusion Reaction Education for BC Pathologists - Webinars now available (Inc. slides & Q&A section)

BC PBCO & BC Technical Resource Group: Transfusion Bits and Bytes (6 educational videos for medical laboratory technologists)

BC PBCO mobile web apps: BMI (Body Mass Index) Calculator and IVIG Dosing Calculator | Instructions:

• Android | Blackberry | iPhone
• For further information contact Quality and Utilization Management Program Coordinator at PBCO

TraQ's December newsletter | BC PBCO

Global News

General

• Beagle sniffs out C. difficile infection (13 Dec. 2012) No limits to the canine snozzle?
• Delay in ordering blood resulted in death & $9 million - Court of Appeals Verdict
  • Fascinating case of interest to physicians, nurses, medical technologists about delay in ordering blood, inc. physician opting to wait for crossmatched units. Legal tidbits:
  • “Degree of reprehensibility of the defendant’s misconduct,” is the “most important indicium of the reasonableness of a punitive damages award”
  • US Supreme Court set 5 factors for determining reprehensibility of a defendant’s misconduct (Read verdict to discover them)
• Leukemia patients remain in remission more than 2 years after receiving genetically engineered T cell therapy (UPenn news release, 9 Dec. 2012)
  • Related news item (11 Dec. 2012)
• AABB Standards:
  • Proposed 8th ed. of Standards for Immunohematology Reference Laboratories (Comment: 28 Sept. - 28 Dec. 2012)
  • Proposed 2nd ed. of Standards for Molecular Testing for Red Cell, Platelet, and Neutrophil Antigens (Comment: 28 Sept. - 28 Dec. 2012)

Canada

• Héma-Québec to run more cultures on quarantined blood (5 Dec. 2012) Leaky bags are from Haemonetics, which has no comment to date

* Also see TraQ's Canada News | International News

Australia / NZ

• 33 wk old fetus gets IVT to treat parvovirus transmitted from Mom (28 Dec. 2012)
• Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia launches fun social media campaign to encourage viewers to imagine a "World Without Pathologists" (28 Nov. 2012) | World without Pathologists (website)
• 30 years of HIV - Rates increase amid new hope for a cure (1 Dec. 2012) (HIV increased 8% last year, 50% over past decade)

Ireland

• IBTS postpones full implementation of EU Blood Directive (14 Nov. 2012) Hb standard led to significant increase in deferrals
• Outgoing chair warns Health Minister that failure to fill ISBT board vacancies creates “unacceptable risk” (27 Nov. 2012)

Saudi Arabia

UK

• Royal Bournemouth Hospital joins NHS Blood and Transplant pilot of electronic tracking systems to monitor blood stocks (16 Nov. 2012)

USA

• Virginia Blood Services sold to Pittsburgh's ITxM (~3 yrs ago "board began looking into ways to better compete") (14 Dec. 2012)
• Homicide rates fall despite soaring gun violence (8 Dec. 2012) Interesting analysis of advances leading to better survival, inc. transfusion practices

Industry news

• Haemonetics: Client letter with examining protocol, photos on potential for leaks in the flexible Y connector of donor line in some whole blood collection sets (14 Dec. 2012) Fall-out from Hema-Quebec issue. Love how they mention in 1st paragraph it's Pall Corp products.
• Immucor launches Lab Education And Resource Network (LEARN) For customers only | Immucor Login

* Also see TraQ's Industry News

Diseases in the news

* See TraQ's 'Disease clearinghouses' in top menu

Resource Library / Links

Canada

BC PBCO and BC TRG: Transfusion Bits and Bytes (6 educational videos for med lab technologists)

BC PBCO mobile web apps: BMI (Body Mass Index) Calculator and IVIG Dosing Calculator | Instructions:

Android | Blackberry | iPhone

For further information contact Quality and Utilization Management Program Coordinator at PBCO