Blood donation and transfusion practices

Blood donation and transfusion systems sit at the intersection of public health and operations management, where decisions about how to recruit donors, store perishable blood products, and distribute supplies under uncertainty carry direct consequences for patient outcomes. Researchers in this area study how hospitals and blood banks can maintain reliable inventories despite demand that spikes unpredictably during disasters or demographic shifts, and how donor behavior—shaped by altruism, social norms, and institutional trust—can be sustained or grown over time. Open questions center on how to design recruitment and retention strategies that hold up as donor-eligible populations age and diversify, and how supply chains can be made resilient enough to absorb the sudden, large-scale disruptions that emergencies create without compromising transfusion safety.

Works

45,685

Total citations

202,666

Keywords

Blood DonationSupply Chain ManagementDonor BehaviorDisaster ResponseBlood TransfusionAltruism