Authors: (including presenting author): :
Hung TC(1), Chan WS(1), Li SY(1), Chu CY(1), Kong SY(1)
Affiliation: :
(1) Blood Collection and Donor Recruitment Department, Hong Kong Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service
Keyword 1: :
Blood donor retention
Keyword 2: :
Phone reminder
Keyword 3: :
Service review and monitoring
Introduction: :
Hong Kong Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service (HKRCBTS) has encountered challenges in stabilizing blood supply after COVID-19 pandemic, largely due to decline in school-based blood drives and work pattern remodeling in companies. Thus, the numbers of new donors and lapsed donors have dropped significantly. Currently, various donor retention strategies, including New Donor (ND) Program, “Cold Call” to lapsed donors, souvenir promotions and public appeal messages, have been organized to expand and sustain donor pool. However, no systematic approach is developed to evaluate the impact of retention strategies on blood collections.
Objectives: :
Beyond organizational measures, Tsuen Wan Donor Cente (TWC) takes the initiative to adopt a protocol driven approach and implement “phone-reminder” which is evaluable by using Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) model.
Methodology: :
According to the KPI, TWC should achieve the assigned collection target of 2,000 units monthly. TWC designed a protocol to respond to collection shortfalls since March 2024. Staff monitored the collection weekly and implemented “phone-reminders” to different donor groups with reference to the donation behaviour when the collection figure started to drop. Based on the previous experience, TWC nurses would retrieve the targeted donor list from the blood bank management system and verify donor’s current eligibility status before calling. Target donor group also included donors who have not returned over years, temporarily-deferred donors, young donors during non-examination periods, and reentry donors due to policy relaxation and etc.
Result & Outcome: :
Compared with 2023, The number of collection at TWC increased by 13% in 2024 after implementing the new protocol (26,385 collections) as a pilot. In 2024, TWC achieved 80% of the monthly collection target whereas the mean was 36.7% in other six donor centers. After full implementation of the protocol in 2025, TWC achieved 113% (27,124 collections) of annual target which significantly outperforms donor centers of similar size (94.1%). The monthly collected target was met in 83.3% of months whereas the mean was 48.6% in other six fixed centers for whole blood donation. Using PDCA model, TWC could monitor, refine and evaluate “phone-reminder” strategies effectively. This is a preliminary, well-structured method providing a clear guideline for nurses to take timely and appropriate actions for expanding donor pool and improving collections. On top of that, further exploration on developing strategies will be conducted, aiming at stabilizing blood supply.
