Improving Transfusion Safety in the Operating Room With a Barcode Scanning System Designed Specifically for the Surgical Environment and Existing Electronic Medical Record Systems: An Interrupted Time Series Analysis

Abstract

A barcode-based system designed for easy integration to different commonly used anesthesia information management systems was implemented in a large urban academic hospital. The system allows a single user with the assistance of a software system to perform and document pretransfusion safety verification. The system improved transfusion documentation compliance, averted potential transfusion errors, and became the preferred method of blood transfusion safety checking.