Design and deployment of a blood safety monitoring tool

Abstract

Blood is a scarce resource critical to the management of a variety of life-threatening medical conditions. It can also be a medium for the transmission of infections, including HIV. Monitoring the quality and quantity of available blood, essential to utilizing it as effectively as possible, has been a challenge in many developing countries. This paper describes the design and implementation of a web-based tool to monitor the collection, screening and distribution of blood in developing countries. This project was conducted under the auspices of the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which funds blood safety projects in 14 countries in Africa and the Caribbean. We report results from a usability study, formulate relevant design principles and discuss prospects for long-term sustainability.