A Retrospective Evaluation of Quality Indicators in a Tertiary Care Blood Centre: A Quality Management Perspective

Background

Ensuring the safety, efficiency, and traceability of blood transfusion services requires a robust quality management system. Quality indicators serve as critical tools to monitor, evaluate, and improve performance across the transfusion chain. It can further enhance operational efficiency by eliminating waste and reducing process variation.

Objectives

This study aims to assess the performance of quality indicators in a tertiary care blood centre using retrospective data, and to evaluate the potential impact of Pareto chart on identifying causes on sample rejections and key elements to focus on service delivery and compliance outcomes.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was conducted using quality indicator data collected over a 12-month period. Key indicators such as Donor adverse reaction rate, Donor deferral rate, TTI (Transfusion Transmitted Infection) discard rate and IQC failure rate of PRBC, Platelets were assessed. Root cause analyses was used to identify priority areas.

Results

The overall performance was found to be satisfactory with the donor deferral rate and adverse donor reaction rate were 6.97% and 0.16% respectively. The mean transfusion-transmitted infection (TTI) rate being 0.53% and adverse transfusion reaction rate 0.06%. The Quality control (QC) failure rates were meeting the quality requirement. The component issued in study period was 98.95%. The sample rejection rate was 0.45%.

Conclusion

Quality indicators, when systematically monitored and aligned with Lean Six Sigma principles, serve as powerful levers for continuous quality improvement in transfusion medicine. This study highlights the importance of data-driven management strategies for advancing safe, efficient, and sustainable blood services.