The Department of Anesthesiology along with faculty from several departments in the UF College of Medicine will host a three-day multidisciplinary conference focused on the future of patient blood management (PBM) in Orlando this February.
The inaugural Tourniquetting Transfusion Conference will feature presentations from a wide range of healthcare professionals in the fields of anesthesiology, surgery, blood banking, and hematology/oncology as well as prominent international experts. Registration for the event, which will be held Feb. 21 to Feb. 23 at the Orlando World Center Marriott, is open through Dec. 1.
Patient Blood Management
“The goal of this conference is to help the University of Florida carve out its space as a leader in patient blood management,” said Bruce Spiess, M.D., professor of anesthesiology and associate chair for research, who leads UF’s PBM program.
The conference will examine cutting-edge research and developments regarding the functions of blood, oxygen delivery, microcirculation and inflammation coagulation. PBM is a patient-centered discipline that is focused on quality improvement and seeks to improve patient outcomes and satisfaction and lower costs. As more options for treating blood loss have been developed, multidisciplinary teams have increasingly been implementing PBM techniques to reduce adverse outcomes and costs.
The success of various PBM programs in the United States and internationally will be discussed with an emphasis on how programs can develop and embrace the four pillars of PBM: interdisciplinary blood conservation modalities, managing anemia, optimizing coagulation and patient-centered decision-making.
The success of various PBM programs in the United States and internationally will be discussed with an emphasis on how programs can develop and embrace the four pillars of PBM: interdisciplinary blood conservation modalities, managing anemia, optimizing coagulation and patient-centered decision-making.
PBM begins with treating anemia and preparing patients for a surgical event. In the United States, approximately 37% of all patients entering surgery are anemic; therefore, much of the conference will focus on the paradigm shift of anemia diagnosis and treatment before surgery, which is not only cost effective, but also a key part of patient-centered care.
Ongoing research has shown that there are various associations between transfusion and adverse outcomes beyond HIV and hepatitis transmission, such as longer hospital and intensive care unit stays, lung dysfunction, hospital-acquired infections, renal failure, stroke and myocardial infarction.
Conference Sessions
Organizers sought to include a wide variety of sessions to appeal to an array of specialties and healthcare professionals, including anesthesiologists, certified nurse anesthetists, anesthesiology assistants, surgeons, critical care physicians, hospitalists, hospital executives, operating room nurses, intensive care nurses, perfusionists, PBM/bloodless medicine coordinators, blood bankers, hematologists, laboratory medicine personnel, nurse practitioners and physician assistants.
“Patient blood management is a discipline that encompasses all of healthcare,” Spiess said. “We want the conference to be for everyone.”
Conference sessions will cover topics including the application of PBM in military medicine and national disasters and its use in various clinical situations such as pediatric spine and cranial synostosis. The conference will also discuss PBM in pandemic situations. Eleven faculty and staff from the Department of Anesthesiology will speak. Three industry-supported lectures are also planned.
Axel Hofmann, M.D., who is affiliated with universities in Zurich and Western Australia, will give the keynote address, titled “The Importance of Blood Management on a World Stage.” Hofmann is an international expert on PBM and the task force leader for PBM at the World Health Organization.
“We hope this conference kicks off a long and involved leadership in PBM by the University of Florida,” Spiess said.
Registration
For complete details, including an agenda, information on CME credits, and how to register, visit https://cme.ufl.edu/pbm/.
