Day in the life of a Transfusion Practitioner – No day is ever the same! | Blog posts

My name is Carole McBride,  I am a Transfusion Practitioner at the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust. 

As part of Healthcare Science Week 2023, I want to share with you what a 'day in the life' is like for a Transfusion Practitioner, to create awareness of the endless opportunities available in healthcare science for you. 

Starting the day, I leave home between eight and half past.

I usually arrive at the Trust around nine, with my first job being to check my emails. I receive a reporting that a patient has had a reaction after being transfused some red blood cells so I check in with the laboratory transfusion staff and they provide me with the related paperwork. I then head over to the ward to investigate. I speak to the staff looking after the patient and have a look at the notes, come back to my desk and report my findings on datix, which is the Trusts electronic incident reporting system, and to SHOT (serious hazards of transfusion).

Next, I am off to A&E to give some training on a new blood fridge, yes, we are finally moving into the digital age. The new Blood Track system involves special fridges that can record our vein-to-vein traceability using an electronic system, instead of relying on paper registers, and is much safer for patients. The staff are keen to learn and really like the new system.

Lunchtime – whilst eating, I hear a helicopter land and go and investigate. It’s the air ambulance and they have come to restock emergency blood. For those that don’t know we provide emergency blood for the Yorkshire air ambulance for use in the field if required.

The air ambulance team have been out to a serious road traffic accident where they had to air lift a patient to one of the local trauma centres. I collect the paperwork from the laboratory and send out an audit form to the hospital receiving the patient. The receiving hospital will send back details on the patient’s treatment and outcome, which is then reported back to the air ambulance team.

The final job of the day is to prepare for the next day’s Hospital Transfusion Committee (HTC) meeting. These meetings are held quarterly and involve our Hospital Transfusion Team (HTT) and representatives from each hospital division, where we discuss all things transfusion.

It gives the HTT opportunity to communicate things such as new systems, discuss any incidents and learning from the investigation, and also provides a platform for the clinical divisions to raise any queries or issued they may have.

I could go on, but its home time now, but please get in touch if you are interested in learning more. Healthcare science is open to anyone with an interest, from those already working in the NHS to those eager to explore the opportunities.

It's 10 past 5, so I am leaving now, who knows what tomorrow will bring.

To find out more visit NHS Jobs and search 'The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust' to find our vacancies to suit you.