The maximum surgical blood order schedule and surgical blood use in the United States.

The outdating of units of blood can be reduced by decreasing the amount of time they spend in an assigned or crossmatched status. This reduction can be achieved in a hospital by establishing a maximum surgical blood order schedule (MSBOS) which reduces the excessive number of units of blood crossmatched preoperatively for patients undergoing elective surgery. The various steps which occurred in the development of a MSBOS in a large general hospital are detailed and the projected reduction in the number of crossmatched units which can be achieved with the MSBOS is illustrated. illustrated. The projected number of units of blood transfused to patients during their hospitalization for 50 common primary surgical procedures in the United States during 1974 is presented as a basis for defining maximum blood orders for each procedure.