Comment Period Opens for Proposed 11th Edition of Standards for Perioperative Autologous Blood Collection and Administration

The proposed draft Standards for Perioperative Autologous Blood Collection and Administration, 11th edition, is available for public comment through May 28.

A summary memo that accompanies the proposed Perioperative Standards provides a comprehensive description of the additions and edits in the draft. Some of the significant changes include:

• Each chapter now concludes with the record retention table for those standards. Users should note that a comprehensive record retention table still exists in Chapter 6.
• Chapter 4 includes a new standard focused on agreements between programs and third-party providers for contracted activities.
• Chapter 5 includes a new standard focused on acute normovolemic hemodilution in the perioperative collection section.
• Chapter 5 also includes a new standard focused on platelet-rich plasma in the perioperative collection section.
• Chapter 7 includes new standards concerning the steps needed in case of a suspected adverse event.

In addition, the proposed 11th edition of Perioperative Standards incorporates the updated quality systems essentials that form the basis for all sets of AABB Standards. The updated quality systems essentials provide a one-page guidance before the beginning of each of the 10 chapters. This guidance includes:

• A description of the chapter and what the standards therein cover.
• A list of key terms that mirror the content of the chapter and that should be kept in mind when reviewing the standards.
• A list of key objectives that an assessor could look for during an onsite assessment; however, this list is not comprehensive.

Users should note that these are not requirements that members will be held against. Rather, they are tools to assist users in their understanding of the content of the chapter.

The Perioperative Standards Committee encourages interested individuals to submit comments in the next 60 days. The standards in the 11th edition are in the proposed phase and will be finalized after the comment period has concluded. The committee will review all comments and provide a summary document that describes the rationale for its final decisions.