The ICU Coordinator and Mary Radcliff are the technician in charge of the blood banking system. Drs. Sharon Kerwin and Maureen McMichael are responsible for management of the client-owned blood donors. (e.g., annual blood, physical exams, etc.)
When blood or blood products are needed, notify the technician on duty as to the type of product needed, and the amount. A blood transfusion form must be filled out as to the premedications required, the rate of transfusion, etc. This form remains as part of the patient’s permanent record. If there are special requests (ie: fresh draw), the technician on blood call must be paged in. Please page the technician on call AFTER owner agrees with the charge.
Canine blood and blood products available are: fresh whole blood, packed red cells, fresh frozen plasma, and cryoprecipitate. The fresh frozen plasma must be retrieved by the ICU technician on duty. Please note that we cannot sell any blood or blood products to referring veterinarians without permission from Dr. McMichael or the ICU Coordinator.
In cats, packed red cells and FFP are available. The feline blood is kept in the ICU refrigerator, and feline plasma must be obtained by the ICU technician.
There are both feline and canine donors on call whose owners carry a pager. Only the technician on blood call has the permission to call a donor in.
There are no “in-house” VMS blood donors.
CROSS-MATCH PROTOCOL
Cross matching is available. Blood collected from both the donor and recipient are required. The ICU technician on duty can pull “sausages” from available blood products for submission.
Blood typing cards are available in ICU for felines, and is highly recommended in all feline patients as the test is quick and inexpensive. Canine blood typing is available in ICU. Please plan ahead and cross match anemic patients with a past history of transfusions, particularly before the weekend or holidays.
The technician on blood call is posted in ICU on the blood board, as well as donor availability.
