Provision of COVID‐19 Convalescent Plasma in a Resource‐Constrained State

Ipe, Tina S.; Le, Tuan; Quinn, Brian; Kellar, Stan; Clark, Melisa; Carlisle, Suzanna; Rassmann, Anja; Hennigan, Steve; Ridenour, Terry; Roberts, Anthony; Avery, David; Ryan, Stefanie; Pearson, Shanna; Kothari, Atul; Patil, Naveen

BACKGROUND: Arkansas is a rural state of 3 million people. It is ranked fifth for poverty nationally.(1) The first case of COVID‐19 in Arkansas occurred on March 11, 2020. Since then, approximately 8% of all Arkansans have tested positive. Given the resource limitations of Arkansas, COVID‐19 convalescent plasma (CCP) was explored as a potentially life‐saving, therapeutic option. Therefore, the Arkansas Initiative for Convalescent Plasma was developed to ensure that every Arkansan has access to this therapy. STUDY DESIGN AND METHOD: This brief report describes the statewide collaborative response from hospitals, blood collectors, and the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) to ensure that COVID‐19 convalescent plasma was available in a resource‐limited state. RESULTS: Early contact tracing by ADH identified individuals who had come into contact with “patient zero” in early March. Within the first week, 32 patients tested positive for COVID‐19. The first set of CCP collections occurred on April 9, 2020. Donors had to be triaged carefully in the initial period, as many had recently resolved their symptoms. From our first collections, with appropriate resource and inventory management, we collected sufficient CCP to provide the requested number of units for every patient treated with CCP in Arkansas. CONCLUSIONS: The Arkansas Initiative, a statewide effort to ensure CCP for every patient in a resource‐limited state, required careful coordination among key players. Collaboration and resource management was crucial to meet the demand of CCP products and potentially save lives. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.