Harbor UCLA Medical Center, Level 1 Trauma Center streamlined its transfusion operations and saved costs by implementing the MaxPlus MTP Cooler®
Massive Transfusion Protocol challenge:
STAT issue of pRBC(1-6°C), FFP(1-6°C) and Platelets(20-24°C) to trauma victims with massive bleeding needs to happen instantly. Trauma victims with massive bleeding have a mortality rate of greater than 30%. Every minute delayed in getting the cooler to the patient increases the patients’s mortality rate by 5% 1. Several studies have demonstrated improved patient outcomes with implementation of a Massive Transfusion Protocol (MTP).
Study Design:
From January 2019-March 2020, MaxPlus MTP Cooler® with 3 different compartments for RBC, FFP and Platelets was implemented in the Level 1 Trauma center by the Department of Pathology and Laboratory medicine, Harbor UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, CA. For each MTP initiation, temperature of individual units was monitored using HemoTemp™ II (Biosynergy 3000B) for RBC and Temp-Check TC-12 (Hampshire Controls Corp.) for thawed FFP and Platelet. The number of RBC units discarded due to temperature excursion was analyzed to assess impact of the MaxPlus MTP cooler implementation. The UCLA Harbor team compared the data for the MaxPlus MTP Cooler to previously collected data from 2015-2018 in using Mini Igloo® cooler for RBC in MTP initiations.
Results:
Results show that by implementing MaxPlus MTP Coolers®, pRBC wastage was reduced from 5.28% to 0.7%, an 86% decrease. Temperature excursion associated wastage data before and after the new protocol implementation is presented in Table 1.
Table 1. RBC usage and wastage during MTP from 2015-2020
Study results show that the MaxPlus MTP Cooler can significantly improve transfusion service efficiency, while reducing total costs. Blood banks have to tackle several operational risks, especially during trauma situations. MaxQ is proud to be a part of the solution for Harbor UCLA Medical Center. Visit MaxPlus MTP Cooler, for more information.
References:
1. Every Minute Counts: Time to Delivery of Initial Massive Transfusion Cooler and Its Impact on Mortality. Meyer, David E, et al. (2017).
2. Turn-key Implementation and Loss Prevention of Blood Units during Massive Transfusion in a Level I Trauma Center. Franco, M., Rangwala, R., Rahman, A., Rapp, T., & Kumar, S. Submitted to AABB. (2020).