Geting multiple transfusions at once

[curiousgrl]

Can a patient receive more then one blood transfusion at once after massive blood loss. If a patient has three IV sites can the patient get two blood transfusions, one in each IV site at the same time to replenish the massive blood loss. The third IV would be for other medications and/or IV fluids

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

The scenario you're talking about sounds like a very critical patient, in which case, yes, multiple units could be going in at the same time. In this patient population, it is not at all uncommon to be using a rapid infuser to get those units in even faster. The model we have can infuse at 750mL/min (not hour, minute).

[FurBabyMom, MSN, RN]

We do this - all the time. But I work in a level 1 trauma center. Like RoseQueen, we have a rapid infuser (probably the same type as I think our rate is the same).

I've been in MANY emergency situations where we're hanging blood products as fast as we can get them and check them in (even if we're just checking the fake patient name and standard unidentified patient DOB - we've had more than one non-ID'd patient on MTP - and if either has transitioned to crossmatched units that could be BAD if we give the wrong products to the wrong patient). We're usually calling blood bank begging them to release more products - using products on our Massive Transfusion Protocol (MTP) faster than our blood bank can send them to us. More than once we've drawn a set of type and crossmatch samples in our ORs and sent them to blood bank - only to be told the sample is an exact match to previously released units of pRBCs (transfusions may have started in flight or in the ED).

[K+MgSO4, BSN]

Yep, all blood products flying in any access point. It is called Massive Transfusion Protocol. We have started it on the ward for patients with massive GI bleeds while we wait for the OR to be free for an urgent scope or embolization - honestly a rare occurrence but our peri op services and ED do it all the time- quantertiary trauma centre in Australia.