Surveys and Reports

The Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy (OIDP) oversees a variety of national surveys and studies related to blood, tissue, and organ safety.

• Toward the Development of a National Red Blood Cell Antibody Patient Data Exchange (RBCAX): 2023 Interim Report

  OIDP contracted Rose Li and Associates, Inc. (RLA) to produce a report titled: "Toward the Development of a National Red Blood Cell Antibody Patient Data Exchange (RBCAX): 2023 Interim Report." The objective is to provide OIDP with an interim report that summarizes the results of an environmental scan, including a literature review and relevant case studies, to determine lessons learned, best practices, and next steps toward the development, implementation, and sustainment of a national red blood cell antibody patient data exchange.

• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Adequacy of the National Blood Supply Report to Congress, 2020*

  In 2019, the Congress of the United States passed and the President signed the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act. The Act commissioned a report on the adequacy of the national blood supply. Specifically, the report sought to make recommendations related to the challenges associated with the continuous recruitment of blood donors, ensuring the adequacy of the blood supply in the case of public health emergencies, the implementation of the transfusion transmission monitoring system, and other measures to promote safety and innovation, such as the development, use, or implementation of new technologies, processes, and procedures to improve the safety and reliability of the blood supply. OIDP organized a Working Group of industry experts to provide input and draft the report which sent to Congress in January 2021.

• National Blood Collection and Utilization Survey (NBCUS)

  Since 1997, the biennial NBCUS has been the primary method of gathering blood collection and utilization data in the United States. The survey includes questions on general facility information; blood collections, processing, and testing; blood and blood component transfusions; modification of components; and prices paid by hospitals for blood components. To estimate blood collection and utilization, all U.S. blood collection centers and acute care hospitals (with the exception of Department of Defense facilities) performing at least 100 inpatient surgical procedures per year and located within the 50 states and the District of Columbia are asked to participate.

• National Tissue Recovery through Utilization Survey

  The American Association of Tissue Banks was contracted to conduct a survey of U.S. tissue establishments that provide or engage in one or more services involving tissue from living or deceased persons. Services included donor eligibility assessment and recovery, processing, storage. and distribution of human tissue. The report provides a comprehensive view of tissue banking activities in 2012 and 2015; key information collected from both years, and from a 2007 survey by American Association of Tissue Banks, was compared where possible.

• Tissue and Organ Donor Epidemiology Study

  Mandatory and voluntary measures are in place to provide safe, transplantable organs and tissues; however, efforts to minimize the risk of donor-derived infections continue. The overarching goals of the Tissue and Organ Donor Epidemiology Study were to: (1) develop a study design or framework to effectively collect and analyze demographic, screening, and infectious disease testing data obtained from deceased organ, tissue, and eye donors, including referral-only donors, in a standardized manner; (2) identify challenges to obtaining such data in a consistent and standardized format; and (3) identify limitations, including sources of bias from data collected. This exploratory study creates a pathway for further research to more accurately estimate infection risks associated with organ and tissue transplantation.

• Blood Sustainability Study

  OIDP contracted the RAND Corporation to produce a research report titled “Toward a sustainable blood supply in the United States: an analysis of the current system and alternatives for the future.” The objective is to analyze and develop a report on the present and potential future sustainability of the U.S. blood system. The study draws on a range of quantitative and qualitative methodologies, including analysis of aggregated claims data and survey data, semi-structured interviews across key stakeholder groups, and reviews of existing peer-reviewed and other literature.

• Symposium on Accessibility and Development of Tissue Products for Emergency Preparedness

  In the context of a mass burn casualty event, an assessment of the status of the national preparedness program identified gaps to ensuring an adequate response, including the ability to ensure a robust supply of human skin and alternative products to treat burn patients. A May 2015 symposium, sponsored by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health in collaboration with the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response/Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority and the Department of Defense/Medical Research and Materiel Command, examined these gaps in more depth. The symposium gave leaders in government, burn care, and industry an opportunity to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the current challenges to deliver an effective response to mass burn casualty events, and fostered discussions on potential strategies to address key challenges moving forward.

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