SURVEY OF THE INFORMATION GIVEN TO PATIENTS ABOUT BLOOD-TRANSFUSION AND THE NEED FOR CONSENT BEFORE TRANSFUSION

There is no current requirement in the United Kingdom to provide patie nts with information about blood transfusion or to seek their written consent to transfusion. To study patients' attitudes to these question s, a questionnaire survey was carried out on 51 patients during an adm ission to hospital in which they received a blood transfusion. The pat ients in this survey, although mostly satisfied about the information they were given before they were transfused, would have welcomed more general information about transfusion, mainly because of concerns abou t the risk of viral infections. Nearly 40% of patients thought that wr itten consent should be obtained before transfusion, but the ethical a nd practical aspects of this issue are complex. Further debate would b e required before implementation of written consent to transfusion cou ld be considered as a routine policy.