Automating the transfusion service in the 21st century

摘要

The transfusion service has been the last area of the clinical laboratory to adopt computerization and automation. Increased regulatory scrutiny has certainly limited innovation in US laboratories during the past 10 years. On the other hand, blood bankers have been slow adopters of innovation in general. The impetus for change has been driven from outside the laboratory. Our customers demand faster turnaround times while the number of trained staff available to do the work has decreased. Centralized testing has concentrated the work in large laboratories that can process the volume required to make automation cost-effective. In addition, there has been increased oversight from a variety of voluntary and governmental agencies. As automation has been accepted by technologists and management, smaller institutions are realizing the value in standardizing the testing process#