Inventory Management and Product Selection in Pediatric Blood Banking

Blood banks need to understand patterns of use and ordering practices to provide the blood donor centers with the best information with which to develop daily scheduled deliveries of blood products. Blood use is a large component of this process through maximizing physician education about appropriate ordering practices and use of appropriate tools. Simple measures can help provide guidance on the number of available components and the need to order more from the blood donor center. Special product requests in pediatrics, such as fresh blood, leukoreduction, irradiation, and antigen-negative units can also drive inventory practices and use patterns.