Storage of whole blood for up to 24 hours at ambient temperature before component preparation: implementation in the Netherlands
The author retired in 2007 from Sanquin Blood Bank North West Region, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She is a board-certified physician in internal medicine and transfusion medicine and earned her PhD on improved platelet preparation. She has more than 25 years' experience in transfusion medicine and blood banking and has served in a variety of senior management positions in the blood bank in Amsterdam with a focus on research and development of blood components, clinical consultation, and education.
Abstract
The aim of this article is to reflect on the historical background on what urged the authors in the 1980s to investigate the prolonged storage of whole blood at ambient temperature before component preparation, the routine implementation of the method in the Netherlands, and the effect on logistics and plasma procurement.