Resources

Each year, nearly 5 million Americans receive blood transfusions. In many cases, the transfusions are responsible for preserving life or the successful treatment of blood disorders that could lead to poor health outcomes. In order for transfusions to be successful, blood bags that contain transfusable blood must have certain types of blood bag labeling that helps preserve the integrity of collected blood. Below are five examples of these type of labels.

Blood Type Labels
In order for transfusion patients to receive positive health outcomes from donated blood, they must receive the same blood type that they were born with. Identifying blood bags with blood bag labeling that clearly identifies blood type helps prevent transfusion errors that could precipitate other health problems that extend hospital stays and drive up healthcare costs.

Expiration Date Labels
Like most biological substances that are gleaned from the human body, blood has an expiration date. Transfusing patients with expired blood can potentially lead to infection and complex immune system responses that are medical conditions in themselves. Outfitting blood bags with labels that indicate the expiration date of blood helps prevent tenuous health conditions that result from “bad blood”.

Cryogenic Labels
When hospitals have a large supply of donated blood, they often store the blood under cryogenic conditions that significantly slow down the molecular activity of blood and help to extend its lifespan. If you opt to store blood in a cryogenic unit, you’ll need cryogenic labels that perform well at temperatures that fall below −150°C or -235ºF This temperature is widely accepted as the temperature at which refrigeration ends and cryogenics begins.

Compliance Labels
Donated blood must conform to certain adherence standards established by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), particularly 1 CFR175.10. According to Intermec — a producer and supplier of automated identification and data capture products — adherence to the standard is required to “increase [blood] safety should components of the adhesive migrate through the plastic into the blood bag.”

Permanent Labels
Because most blood bags are discarded after a single use, and because blood bag labeling plays a crucial role in identifying health-critical data regarding the blood supply, outfitting blood bags with permanent blood bag labeling is an ideal option. Permanent labels easily peel away from the sheet and stay firmly in place throughout the lifespan of collected blood. The key is to ensure that permanent labels are designed for blood bag storage conditions (e.g., cryogenics).

Need Blood Bag Labeling?
If your healthcare facility or blood collection unit needs blood bag labeling to preserve the integrity of blood samples, Shamrock Labeling Systems can supply stock labels and custom labels that meet your needs. Using our blood bag labels does more than make it easy for nurses and physicians to identify blood type and expiration date. Our labels also help to support positive health outcomes by supplying these crucial pieces of information, among others.

To place an order for blood bag labels or inquire about our blood bag labeling products, please call us today at (800) 323-0249, or fill out the contact form on our website. We look forward to helping your organization preserve the integrity of blood samples.