Sarasota Memorial honored for blood collection practices

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) has presented the Sarasota Memorial Health Care System with its first ever “BD Quality Award” for pioneering practices in blood collection techniques that promote safe, high-quality patient care.

The award, presented Nov. 2 by BD — which is considered the leading global medical technology company — recognized Sarasota Memorial for developing state-of-the-art processes and procedures designed to prevent hemolysis in patient blood samples sent to the clinical laboratory for testing. Hemolysis is the breakdown of red blood cells. If significant hemolysis occurs in a sample, it could affect test results and lead to additional blood draws and tests, according to SMH officials.

In its continuing effort to develop best practices in patient care, Sarasota Memorial worked with BD to enhance and standardize its new blood collection protocol, educate its clinical staff and put in place a quality control program that ensures the best techniques and proper blood collection products are used in all situations, a hospital news release notes.

Since adopting the best practices in 2009, Sarasota Memorial successfully has maintained a hemolysis rate of less than 1% overall across the health system, a rate well below the national average of 5% to 7%.