Emergency response to COVID‐19 epidemic: One Chinese blood centre's experience

Hu, Ping; Kang, Jianxun; Li, Ying; Li, Xiaochun; Li, Meng; Deng, Min; Zhao, Yuwei; Tian, Hao; Li, Rui; Zhang, Jie; Xi, Yan; Li, Wen; Gao, Jialiang; Shan, Hua; Fu, Xuemei

OBJECTIVE: The COVID‐19 epidemic has caused a significant global social and economic impact since December 2019. The objective of this study was to demonstrate the emergency response of a Chinese blood centre on maintaining both the safety and the sufficiency of blood supply during large, emerging, infectious epidemics. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Early on in the outbreak of COVID‐19, the Chengdu Blood Center developed strategies and implemented a series of measures, including enhanced recruitment efforts, addition of new donation deferral criteria and notification after donation, optimisation of donor experience, development and implementation of a new coronavirus nucleic acid detection technology platform for blood screening and screening all donations for SARS‐CoV‐2 RNA to maximumly protect the safety of blood supply during a time of unclear risk. RESULTS: Starting on February 20, the immediate satisfaction rate of blood product orders in Chengdu city's clinical settings reached 100%, and there was no case of blood transfusion infection. CONCLUSION: The recent experience during the outbreak of SARS‐CoV‐2 reminded us that improvement in the areas of national and international collaborative programmes for dealing with blood availability and safety concerns during early stages of a disaster and regional and national mechanisms for timely communication with the general public on behalf of blood services should help to better prepare us for future disasters.