(P-IT-2) Does In-House Antibody Identification Testing with Software Assistance Actually Improve Patient Care and Reduce Hospital Expenses?

Background/Case Studies: Often blood bank laboratories aim to improve patient care while reducing costs. Limited staff and expertise often impact antibody identification (ABID) assays, leading to samples being sent to reference labs (RL). These delays can affect turnaround time (TAT), potentially causing surgery delays or extended hospital stays, costing hospitals thousands of dollars annually. Implementing software to assist with ABID could reduce send-out costs and improve TAT for better patient care. This retrospective study evaluates whether ABID software positively impacted send-out costs and TAT based on a previous justification.

Study

Design/Methods: Based on the retrospective review it was determined that retaining 5 samples annually would justify the cost and subscription fees to implement a data management system that included ABID Rule Out (RO) software. Our previous abstract (#P-IT-7 AABB2024) also documented a reduction of TAT from send out samples of 30-48 hours to in-house testing of 2 hours/sample. This study was to determine if that goal was achieved. A retrospective review over the past 12 months assessed the number of samples sent out post-implementation and potential TAT savings.

Results/Findings: In 2021, a data management system, ImmuLINK 2.2 (Werfen, Norcross, GA) was implemented across two hospital campuses. Last year, ABID Rule Out (RO) software, ImmuLINK 3.1, was implemented in the main hospital. Based on an average of ~20 send outs/year, it was determined that only 8 had been sent to the RL this year. All eight samples were warm auto antibodies (WARM) that were not performed in-house. That would be approximately a 60% reduction in the first year and based only on the ABID rule out software. Retaining an average of 12 samples annually improved our average TAT by ~400 hours and an additional annual saving of $7-000-$9,000.

Conclusions: In 2021, a data management system, ImmuLINK 2.2 (Werfen, Norcross, GA) was implemented across two hospital campuses. Last year, ABID Rule Out (RO) software, ImmuLINK 3.1, was implemented in the main hospital. Based on an average of ~20 send outs/year, it was determined that only 8 had been sent to the RL this year. All eight samples were warm auto antibodies (WARM) that were not performed in-house. That would be approximately a 60% reduction in the first year and based only on the ABID rule out software. Retaining an average of 12 samples annually improved our average TAT by ~400 hours and an additional annual saving of $7-000-$9,000.