One of the integral member of heatlhcare system, a bloodbank specialist is a person who is responsible for performing blood collection and processing, blood transmission, performing quality checks on blood products, maitaining cold storage and assisting physicians and surgeons in transmitting the blood to the patients.
Blood banks are lifeline of any healthcare system and every year millions of people undergo blood transmission because of accidents, trauma, surgeries or even chronic acute lllness. Blood bank technology is a process of collecting blood samples and performing quality checks for blood types, diseases and other important characteristics.
A blood bank specialist is responsible for:
Identifying blood type and group
Collecting and processing the blood including storage and delivery
Identfying the antibodies in the blood for transfusion
Testing the blood for viruses that might be transmitted during transfusion
Investigating harmful responses of the body to blood transfusion
Supporting physicians in transfusion therapy for patients with coagulopathies (diseases affecting blood clotting), for example, or candidates for organ and cellular transplantation/therapy
Pathway to become blood bank specialist:
To start a career as blood bank specialist, the candidate should hold a bachelors degree besides a training or a certification program in blood bank management, phelebotomy, blood collection and storage, genetics, immunology, blood bank administration and other courses related to transfusion therapy or a combination of few of the courses.
The students can also obtain a degree in microbiology or medical lab technician or can undergo a certified course from Amercian Society of Clinical Pathologists