Blood Transfusion Practice among Healthcare Personnel in Nepal: An Observational Study

BACKGROUND: The complications associated with errors in transfusion practice can be minimized by assessing transfusion practices. In Nepal, there is no standard protocol on blood transfusion. So, this study was conducted with an aim to assess the blood transfusion practice among healthcare personnel. METHODS: A descriptive observational study was conducted in two tertiary hospitals in Kathmandu, Nepal, over a period of 10 months. Bedside blood transfusion procedures were observed using structured checklist. RESULTS: Altogether, 86 observations were made. Time taken from dispatch from the blood bank to transfusion was >2 hours in 53.2% of cases. In majority of the cases, blood was kept in the ward in uncontrolled and unprotected manner by the patients' relatives. Only 8.2% of the patients and/or the relatives were informed about the reasons, associated probable risks (2.4%), and the benefits of transfusion (4.7%). Assessment of vital signs at 15 minutes of initiation of transfusion was done on about 2 to 4% of cases. CONCLUSION: We found a suboptimal blood transfusion practice in Nepal, which could be attributable to substantial knowledge gap among healthcare personnel and the absence of quality culture, quality system, and quality management in the area of blood transfusion practices.