major challenges within the blood supply chain is that
wastage for platelets is high, and currently sits at around
9% within NHSBT, costing around �4 million a year, with
a further �2 million occurring within hospitals. This
wastage is over 95% time related, either expiring with
NHSBT, before it can be sent to a hospital, or it being
surgically or medically ordered for a patient by a hospital
as a precaution, and the unit is not being used and
expiring before it can be given to another patient.
Conclusion
Three of the major challenges within the blood
supply chain are: collaboration between the various
stakeholders, time and wastage; and demand outstripping
supply due to a falling donor base.
A lot of the issues surrounding the blood supply
chain are related to the disjointedness of different areas.
Relations between NHSBT and hospitals are sometimes
challenging, and individual areas often look at the own
gain, rather than the system as a whole. Regulatory
requirements provide a lot of pressure, and stricter
guidelines for donation have an impact on the donor
base, meaning that continuous improvement to the
efficiency of the supply chain to ensure minimal wastage
is essential.
Acknowledgement
This work has been done as part of a Knowledge
Transfer Partnership (KTP) between the Blood Stocks
Management Scheme (NHS) and Cranfield School of
Management Centre for Logistics and Supply Chain
Management, focusing on demand planning and waste
reduction within the blood supply chain.
Further details on KTP, web site: www.ktponline.org.uk
36
FOCUSNOVEMBER2009
Fresh frozen plasma (FFP) � long shelf life
Around 360,000 units of fresh frozen plasma (FFP) are issued
to hospitals every year. FFP is widely used in cases of major
haemorrhage, and is used to replace factors lost through bleeding
that are essential for clotting. It is stored at -30�C, and has a
frozen shelf life of two years. It takes around 30 minutes to thaw,
and once thawed it must be used within 24 hours.
About the authors
Joanna Dobbin is a Knowledge Transfer Partnership Associate working with the Blood Stocks Management
Scheme and Cranfield School of Management. Email: joanna.dobbin@nhsbt.nhs.uk
Professor Richard Wilding is Professor of Supply Chain Risk Management at the Centre for Logistics and Supply
Chain Management at Cranfield School of Management, UK. He is currently supporting the Blood Stocks
Management Scheme through the Knowledge Transfer Partnership. Email: www.richardwilding.info
Sue Cotton is manager of the Blood Stocks Management Scheme. Email: sue.cotton@nhsbt.nhs.uk
Further information, web site: www.bloodstocks.co.uk
Further reading
Two papers were presented at the recent Logistics Research Network Conference in Cardiff:
DOBBIN, J, WILDING, R and COTTON, S, `The application of time-based analysis of the platelets supply chain',
Proceedings of the 14th Annual Logistics Research Network Conference, 9th�11th September 2009, CILT(UK), 2009
DOBBIN, J,WILDING, R and COTTON, S,`An exploration of blood and blood component demand drivers in England',
Proceedings of the 14th Annual Logistics Research Network Conference, 9th�11th September 2009, CILT(UK), 2009
Further information
This paper was first delivered as a presentation at this year's LRN Conference. See report on page 41
for more details.
SUPPLY CHAIN
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