Evidence-based transfusion guidelines for the nonbleeding hemodynamically stable patient suggest the transfusion trigger be set at hemoglobin less than 7.0 and hematocrit less than 21 percent.
The current practice in the regional peer health care systems coincides with these guidelines.
Currently, the criteria at Salem Hospital is a hematocrit of less than 24 percent. Salem Health will be changing its Red Blood Cell Utilization Criteria to align with the evidence-based guideline and the standard of practice in the area.
Effective January 2019, Salem Hospital red cell utilization audits will be using a hematocrit of less than 21 percent to evaluate red blood cell transfusion in the non-bleeding hemodynamically stable patient.
“Red Blood Cell Transfusion: 2016 Clinical Practice Guidelines from the AABB,” The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), an international peer-reviewed medical journal, on Oct. 12, 2016.