There are regional and provincial reports of a clinical practice issue with B.Braun blood administration intravenous (IV) tubing (product #363419, SH-SS SKU 01358) and not being able to puncture through the ports on units of packed red blood cells (PRBCs), resulting in wasted units of blood.

Shared Health Provincial Patient Safety, Shared Health Blood Management and Canadian Blood Services are working on a solution to the issue. Until a solution is available, clinical direction is to continue using B.Braun blood administration IV tubing sets and that units of blood should be placed on a flat surface and punctured using a rotating 10 to 2 wrist motion. Staff are requested to document and report all product issues and blood wastage to assist with the tracking and analysis of the issue. Staff are encouraged to discuss any questions and concerns with their manager/supervisor.

Submitted by: Tamara Burnham, Collaborative Practice Lead
For more information contact: Tim at 431-356-0217 or