Friday 14 July 2017

Do blood transfusions make a difference when you are dying?

Progress in Palliative Care; Jun 2017; vol. 25 (no. 3) pp 126-131
Woodwark, Catherine; Dean, Antonia

This was a retrospective review of patient records over a 54 month period.  The researchers documented the reasons for transfusion and their impact in light of NICE guidelines and studies that question the benefits and costs of red cell transfusions. As a result of this study the hospice has developed an algorithm for the diagnosis and management of fatigue with an emphasis on assessment and re-evaluation after each intervention.

Fulltext available in Progress in Palliative Care
Available in print in Arthur Rank Hospice Library, Cambridge