Process Mining Uncovers Actionable Patterns of Red Blood Cell Unit Wastage in a Health Care Network

Neal I Callaghan; Jason Quinn; Robert Liwski; Natalie Chisholm; Calvino Cheng

doi:10.1016/j.tmrv.2024.150827

Process Mining Uncovers Actionable Patterns of Red Blood Cell Unit Wastage in a Health Care Network

Transfus Med Rev. 2024 Mar 29;38(3):150827. doi: 10.1016/j.tmrv.2024.150827. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Neal I Callaghan¹, Jason Quinn², Robert Liwski², Natalie Chisholm², Calvino Cheng³

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
² Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Division of Hematopathology, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
³ Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Division of Hematopathology, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Electronic address: calvino.cheng@nshealth.ca.

PMID: 38642414
DOI: 10.1016/j.tmrv.2024.150827

Abstract

Packed red blood cell transfusions are integral to the care of the critically and chronically ill patient, but require careful storage and a large, coordinated network to ensure their integrity during distribution and administration. Auditing a Transfusion Medicine service can be challenging due to the complexity of this network. Process mining is an analytical technique that allows for the identification of high-efficiency pathways through a network, as well as areas of challenge for targeted innovation. Here, we detail a case study of an efficiency audit of the Transfusion Medicine service of the Nova Scotia Health Administration Central Zone using process mining, across a period encompassing years prior to, during, and after the acute COVID-19 pandemic. Service efficiency from a product wastage perspective was consistently demonstrated at benchmarks near globally published optima. Furthermore, we detail key areas of continued challenge in product wastage, and suggest potential strategies for further targeted optimization.

Keywords: Blood product; Informatics; Inventory; Logistics; Transfusion.