AM24-MN-20-O: What is Interventional Transfusion Medicine / Hemotherapy? Why It May Represent a New Future for Transfusion Medicine. (Enduring)

Traditionally, the field of transfusion medicine encompasses three major clinical specialties: Blood Banking, Apheresis and Donor / Blood Production Services. However, increasingly more transfusion medicine specialists are also including coagulation into their clinical practices. At the Texas Medicine Center, transfusion medicine teams across various institutions have integrated coagulation with transfusion medicine into a unique clinical service that is sometimes referred to as Hemotherapy or Interventional Transfusion Medicine. For over a decade, these teams of transfusion specialists have been involved in the daily care of patients with special coagulation challenges and patients requiring special transfusion / coagulation support. Speaker 1 will be discussing the critical role the Hemotherapy service fulfill in the daily care of complex pediatric patients including patients on Extracorporeal Life Support and acquired coagulation disorders discovered preoperatively at the largest pediatric hospital in the country. Speaker 2 will also share how research in coagulation medicine has led to improvement in transfusion practices and clinical outcomes. Speaker 2 will be discussing his team’s experiences in support his institution’s adult cardiovascular surgery service. In addition, Dr. Tint will discuss the transfusion medicine fellowship program designed to prepare fellows for a career in Hemotherapy. This session will also touch upon the opportunities and challenges of developing a Hemotherapy service.