Blood banks have numerous tools to keep blood safe from transfusion-transmitted infection. Suchi Pandey helps us understand them all!

Dr. Suchi Pandey

Dr. Suchi Pandey

Blood transfusion is less likely to transmit infections today than ever. Through a combination of screening questions, donor testing, and direct treatment of blood products, the vast majority of opportunities for transfusion-transmitted infections are eliminated.

But it’s all so complex!

Dr. Suchi Pandey provides medical oversight for a busy blood donor center, and she simplifies testing strategies and methods in a way that learners will understand. In this interview, she “tells the story” of how the blood industry has implemented safety measures over the decades to arrive at the current state of extraordinary safety from infection for blood recipients.

Dr. Suchi Pandey

Dr. Suchi Pandey

Blood transfusion is less likely to transmit infections today than ever. Through a combination of screening questions, donor testing, and direct treatment of blood products, the vast majority of opportunities for transfusion-transmitted infections are eliminated.

But it’s all so complex!

Dr. Suchi Pandey provides medical oversight for a busy blood donor center, and she simplifies testing strategies and methods in a way that learners will understand. In this interview, she “tells the story” of how the blood industry has implemented safety measures over the decades to arrive at the current state of extraordinary safety from infection for blood recipients.

image of transfusion-transmitted infection test

About My Guest:

Dr. Suchi Pandey is currently Chief Medical Officer for the Stanford Blood Center and she is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Pathology at Stanford. She is a graduate of Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, the University of California-San Diego Pathology residency, and the University of California-San Francisco/Blood Centers of the Pacific Transfusion Medicine Fellowship. Suchi’s interests include donor health, Transfusion Medicine education, and immunohematology. She is on the board of the California Blood Bank Society, and she is co-chair of the Blood Center of California’s Medical Advisory Committee.

Continuing Education Expired

This podcast episode offered continuing education credit for two years from its release date, but is no longer eligible for such credit.

To find Blood Bank Guy Essentials Podcast episodes with active continuing education opportunities, Click here or visit Transfusion News Continuing Education on Wiley Health Learning.

DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed on this episode are those of my guest and I alone, and do not reflect those of the organizations with which either of us is affiliated. Neither Dr. Pandey nor I have any relevant financial disclosures.

Further Reading:

  • Standards for Blood Banks and Transfusion Services, 32nd edition, AABB 2020
  • Dodd RY, Crowder LA, Haynes JM, et al. Screening Blood Donors for HIV, HCV, and HBV at the American Red Cross: 10-Year Trends in Prevalence, Incidence, and Residual Risk, 2007 to 2016. Transfusion Medicine Reviews 2020
  • Busch MP, Bloch EM, Kleinman S. Prevention of transfusion-transmitted infections. Blood 2019;133: 1854-64
  • FDA Babesia Guidance

Thanks to:

Music Credit

Music for this episode includes “Cuando te invade el temor” and “Reflejo,” both by Mar Virtual via the Free Music Archive. Click the image below for permissions and license details.
Creative Commons license and link

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