Do you need consent to give Kcentra to a bleeding patient?
17 Jan 2021Don’t accidentally order blood for patients who refuse transfusions
By: Matthew Tanner, Salem Health pharmacist in charge
If you aren’t aware of which products are–-or are not--blood products, you can accidentally order blood for a patient who refuses transfusions; for example, a patient who is a Jehovah’s Witness. A new BPA in Epic will alert you if you are about to sign an order for a blood product for a patient who is a Jehovah’s Witness or has a Medical History (documented in Epic) of refusing transfusions. You’ll receive alerts on these blood products:
- Albumin
- Darbepoetin (some of it has albumin)
- PCCs (Kcentra, Profilnine & FEIBA)
- IVIG
- RhoGam
- Humate P (Factor VIII)
- Antithrombin III
This alert went live on Jan. 12. If you have questions or have a med/patient combination where this should have fired and didn’t, please put in a ticket with the solution center or contact Matt Tanner in Pharmacy (matthew.tanner@salemhealth.org or 503-814-9960).
The order looks like this:
