Written consent must be obtained from patients or their guardians before transfusing blood or blood products. In an emergency, a medical officer can take legal responsibility to transfuse without consent.
Blood must not be collected until it is needed for transfusion. Half an hour is the maximum interval permitted between collection and administration, and the transfusion must be completed within 4 hours of collecting the blood from the Blood Bank. If the blood has been collected and a delay seems likely, the container must at once be returned to the Blood Bank for further refrigeration.
Do not store blood in ward or theatre refrigerators, however short the period. Blood which is darker than normal or discoloured may be infected and should not be transfused.
Any blood product which is prepared by an open method, for example, washed red cells, or reconstituted plasma products, is potentially infected and must be used within 24 hours of preparation.
Nothing is to be added to blood.
Before blood products are administered, the particulars on the label must be checked with the particulars on the identification bracelet worn by the patient.
A record of the transfusion should be kept in the patient's notes.