Blood Bank upgrade set for Dec. 8

On Dec. 8, the Soft Blood Bank software will receive a much-needed upgrade. The upgrade will replace software that is more than 10 years old, and will bring several benefits, including:

• More efficient management of blood products
• Simplified administration process for blood products (including enhanced reading of barcodes and administration module)
• Elimination of need for manual workarounds

To prepare for the upgrade, the team has prepared training materials for providers, nurses and other clinical users who order and administer blood products, as well as for Blood Bank employees. Training materials for clinical users are available from the links below (all links will open in Hubbl and require VUNet ID):

• Administering Blood – The Guide
• Documenting Blood in the ED
• Ordering and Administering Blood – Anesthesia
• Ordering Blood in the Inpatient Setting (Nurses)
• Ordering Blood in the Inpatient Setting (Providers)
• Ordering Blood Special Considerations
• Ordering and Administering Blood in the Ambulatory Setting
• Entering Blood Orders in Intra-Op
• Documenting Handover for Blood Administration
• Starting Blood Documentation in Flowsheets – Inpatient Nursing

The upgrade will necessitate a downtime of approximately 10 hours plus validation, and the team working with on-call resources to ensure we are prepared for downtime. 

Downtime Overview

• 10-hour downtime (3 a.m. to 1 p.m.) followed by 1-hour system validation (1-2pm)
• Electronic ordering and documentation in eStar resume at approx.2pm (following announcement)
• 5 additional hours (2-7pm) before interfaces catch up and all Blood Bank testing results in eStar 

During Downtime (Ordering & Specimens)

• Do NOT enter orders for Blood Products or Testing in eStar
• Do NOT release signed and held orders for Blood Bank
• Use paper downtime Blood Bank Requisition (available in eDocs https://edocs.app.vumc.org/EDocsView.aspx?EDocsId=6032) to order BB products and testing 
• If Type and Screen sent, dual verification of patient identity must be documented on Downtime Blood Bank Req. sent with specimen
• Trauma blood and Massive Transfusion Protocol (MTP) ordering (over the phone) will not change while Softbank is down.

During Downtime (Blood Administration)

• Documentation will be on paper TAR
• Charge for blood administration should still be entered into eStar 
• Barcode scanning for PPID and to capture donor number from blood bag will NOT be available
• Special care warranted to ensure correct identification and verification steps are followed without barcode support
  -- Two transfusionists must verify correct patient and that order matches product.
  -- Dual verification of ABO/Rh, Product and donor number comparison between bag and TAR is documented on TAR