About the Blood Matters Program

The Blood Matters Program is a Victorian State Government program run in collaboration with the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood (formerly Blood Service). Through this collaborative approach, the goal is to support and enhance best practices in quality care, clinical safety, and blood management (sustainable, responsible, safe and appropriate use), for improved patient outcomes in Victorian health services.

Strategic direction

Use innovative and diverse approaches to:

• promote and support the development of strategies that optimise appropriate use of blood products/alternatives, and person-centred care through national and local governance frameworks and standards
• foster and strengthen partnerships and stakeholder relationships
• analyse data and disseminate findings across the sector to raise awareness, influence practice, promote efficiencies, and provide value
• provide and promote expert knowledge sharing and collaboration across the sector, including specific initiatives, tools and specialised advice.

Blood Matters - Blood management workshops

The Blood Matters Program can facilitate blood management and transfusion workshops for health services. The workshops follow the blood journey from donation to safe transfusion practice, and incorporates PBM principles. The workshops are free. If you are interested in holding a workshop at your health service please contact the Blood Matters Program.

Blood management/transfusion nurse/trainer/safety officer roles

The Blood Matters Program has been instrumental in implementing the blood management/transfusion nurse/trainer/safety officer roles across Victorian health services and continues to support health services and the staff in these roles.

There are currently, 35 transfusion nurses and 23 transfusion trainers and 1 Transfusion Quality officer employed in Victoria. The ongoing development of the role is of key importance to the Blood Matters Program.

To support the professional development of our network and improve practice, Blood Matters has developed the Specialist Certificate in Blood Management Foundations and the Graduate Certificate in Transfusion Practice course. The University of Melbourne have advised Blood Matters that they will not be offering this course in 2020. Blood Matters are currently exploring other options for the future

Advisory Committee

The Blood Matters Advisory Committee (BMAC) consists of multidisciplinary representatives from the private and public health sectors. It provides an opportunity for engagement and collaboration to promote a multidisciplinary, multimodal program approach to all aspects of blood management.

For further information regarding membership of the BMAC please contact the Blood Matters Program.

Blood Matters contacts

Find contact details for Blood Matters staff, and for Victorian and interstate transfusion nurses, trainers, safety officers and quality officers on the contacts page.

History

The Blood Matters Program grew out of a project that began in April 2002, which involved the collaboration of three organisations. The project developed and tested tools and processes aimed at improving the quality and safety of transfusion practice in health services.

The project was expanded in 2003 to include an additional 12 public hospitals, which was named the Blood Matters Breakthrough Collaborative project. This expanded project used methodology developed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in the United States to further test and develop various quality improvement strategies over an 18-month period.

Blood Matters has continued to grow and evolve over the years and continue to provide quality improvement strategies in line with changes in the blood sector.

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