Garrett County Memorial Hospital has been granted a renewal to their accreditation by the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB), according to Joyce Nutter, MT (ASCP) BB, GCMH Laboratory Director.

Accreditation follows an intensive on-site assessment by specially trained AABB assessors and establishes that the level of medical, technical and administrative performance within the facility meets or exceeds the standards set by AABB. By successfully meeting those requirements, Garrett County Memorial Hospital joins approximately 1,700 similar facilities across the United States and abroad that have earned AABB accreditation.

“The AABB’s accreditation procedures are voluntary,” explains Joyce Nutter, GCMH Lab Director. “Garrett County Memorial Hospital has sought AABB accreditation because it provides a structured evaluation by peers to help us, as professionals, to gauge our level of efficiency compared to industry accepted standards. AABB delivers staff education to enable us to utilize our organizational resources maximally and thereby achieve the next higher level of proficiency. It enhances our readiness to deal with change and unforeseen challenges to public health.”

Since 1958, AABB has been engaged in the accreditation of blood banks and transfusion services. Today its accreditation program assists blood banks, transfusion services, cellular therapy facilities, parentage testing laboratories, immunohematology reference laboratories and perioperative services in determining whether methods, procedures, personnel knowledge, equipment and the physical plant meet established requirements. The minimum requirements for accreditation are based primarily on a set of specific standards for the area in which accreditation are being sought. These standards not only reflect the level of professional proficiency for blood banks and transfusion services in the United States, but also provide the basis for practice in similar facilities around the world.

AABB accreditation is the designation of choice for blood banking, transfusion medicine, blood management and cellular therapies because it demonstrates an organization’s commitment to advanced learning, continuous improvement and innovation by striving to sustain the highest possible level of patient and donor care. AABB-accredited organizations are recognized by their peers as leaders in their field and as pivotal voices in the dialogue through which consensus-based, voluntary standards are developed and implemented.

AABB is an international non-profit membership organization dedicated to advancing the field of transfusion medicine and related biological therapies. AABB sets standards, accredits facilities, publishes books and publications and produces programs to improve patient and donor safety.

AABB membership comprises independent blood centers, hospital blood banks, transfusion services, HPC facilities, Cord blood banks and perioperative services, and the dedicated professionals who staff them, in 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 80 countries. AABB serves about 1,800 institutions and 8,000 individual members, including physicians, scientists, administrators, medical technologists, nurses, researchers, blood donor recruiters, and public relations personnel.