Inventory Planning and Management

Planning


Canadian Blood Services engages in an extensive blood collection and plasma protein product procurement planning process to ensure we effectively meet the needs of patients. This planning process includes a review of historical demand as well as international demand trends and future innovations that could impact demand.

Hospitals are critical partners in the inventory planning and management process. We ask that you keep us informed of any changes in your hospital practices that could impact your demand for blood components or plasma protein products.

Management


Blood is a precious resource that must be carefully managed. Blood system stakeholders and patients expect a safe, secure, cost-effective, affordable and accessible supply of quality blood components and products. Adherence to blood system wide inventory management best practices can optimize donor collections, component manufacturing, and the inventory that a blood supplier and a hospital needs to keep on hand to meet patient needs, and contribute to minimizing component outdate rates. Consult the below tools for inventory management best practices.

  1. Blood Inventory Management Best Practices Guide
  2. Hospital Inventory Management Best Practices Poster
  3. Blood Inventory Management Best Practices Poster

Graphic

Daily Red Cell and Platelet Inventory Status Report


Canadian Blood Services provides a Daily Red Cell and Platelet Inventory Status report to hospitals and provincial blood offices. The report provides a snapshot of the local blood supplier inventory, as of 03:00 Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday. Report legend 

The national inventory held by Canadian Blood Services may be used to offset any local shortages. 

Blood Inventory Shortages Management


Even with carefully formulated collection and production plans, unexpected short term and long term shifts in demand may result in blood system inventory challenges.

To prepare for such a challenge, the Canadian Blood Services Provincial/Territorial Blood Liaison Committee asked the National Advisory Committee (NAC) on Blood and Blood Products to develop a framework to determine the equitable allocation of labile blood components in times of shortage. In response to that request NAC, in collaboration with Canadian Blood Services, produced the National Plan for the Management of Shortages of Labile Blood Components.