Airlift Northwest/UW Medicine

Blood Managment in Air Transport

Airlift Northwest/UW Medicine transports more than 4000 patients annually in the Pacific Northwest. Their treatment protocols include the administration of Blood Products for critically ill and traumatically injured patients. The acquisition, distribution, retrieval and return of blood products requires attention to a variety of factors in timing, temperature control and geographical distribution. To effectively manage and administer this part of the Airlift program requires process planning and execution that maintains the viability of the blood products in a dynamic environment. Improvements to the system of delivery would benefit patients and crews as well as positively impact the financial outcomes. The student team will work to review procurement (UW Blood Bank --> Airlift), Distribution & Storage (8 bases across Washington and Alaska), and maintaining product viability (expiration dating) and returning of product. The outcomes will be recommendations for improvement or process redesign in any aspect of the Blood delivery process including human factors. There is also a mechanical engineering student team working specifically on the ancillary equipment related to managing blood products (cooler boxes, in aircraft spaces, on-base storage) as well as associated monitoring (i.e. temperature control). The ISE and ME teams will collaborate to share insight to lead to effective, systems-level solutions.