Haemovigilance study at a tertiary care hospital in the north‐east of India

Abstract

Background and AimBlood transfusion is a frequent and integral part of critical patient care. Even though life‐saving, it could be occasionally risky and result in a spectrum of adverse events. Haemovigilance programme is a standard set‐up to monitor the entire transfusion chain, evaluate and analyse the data to improve patient's safety. The haemovigilance programme has been established in India very recently. We report the implemented haemovigilance programme at a tertiary care hospital in the north‐east of India.Methods and MaterialsThis study was prospective and observational. It was carried out for a period of 9 months, from September 2013 to May 2014, in the State of the Art Model Blood Bank, Gauhati Medical College and Hospital, Guwahati, Assam, India. Transfusion reaction reporting forms, which are supplied by the Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission, were utilized to collect the data.ResultsA total of 51 000 blood components were transfused and 106 adverse events reported during the period of the study. The major stakes of adverse events were febrile non‐haemolytic transfusion reactions (50%), pruritus (17·92%) and rigour/chills (11·32%). All the adverse events were found to be Grade 1 (non‐severe) type, and there were no severe or life‐threatening adverse events.