|
|
|
|
A gunshot victim is rushed to the emergency room. He has lost a lot of blood. His pulse is weak and rapid and his blood pressure is falling. The ER physician orders a stat type and
cross match for four units of blood. The phlebotomist draws a blood specimen from the patient and rushes it to the Blood Bank.
|
The Blood Bank Technologist will perform an ABO and Rh type on the patient and select appropriate units of blood for transfusion. She will perform compatibility testing to ensure that the donor's blood will be compatible with the recipient. Transfusion of incompatible blood may cause a fatal transfusion reaction, so the utmost care and attention to detail are required. |
|
Other work performed in the Blood Bank includes collecting blood from donors, testing donor units for infectious agents such as hepatitis B and HIV, and preparing blood components (platelets, fresh frozen plasma, cryoprecipitate). Blood Bank Technicians and Technologists also perform tests on pregnant women and newborns to help diagnose hemolytic disease of the newborn--a condition in which the mother's antibodies destroy the baby's red blood cells. They perform tests to determine how much Rh immune globulin to administer to Rh negative women following the birth of an Rh positive child so that Rh hemolytic disease of the newborn can be prevented. |
|
Medical Laboratory Technicians and Technologists who work in the Blood Bank are key players in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. They help to save lives.
Give the gift of life. Donate blood.
Link To Florida Blood Services
|
|
|