Haemovigilance Programme of India (HvPI)

GENERAL DEFINITIONS

(Reference: These have been adopted from the document published by ISBT working party on haemovigilance as on June 2013 endorsed by IHN)

Adverse Event

An adverse event is an undesirable and unintended occurrence before, during or after transfusion of blood or blood component which may be related to the administration of the blood or component. It may be the result of an error or an incident and it may or not result in a reaction in a recipient.

Incident

An incident is a case where the patient is transfused with a blood component which did not meet all the requirements for a suitable transfusion for that patient, or that was intended for another patient. It thus comprises transfusion errors and deviations from standard operating procedures or hospital policies that have led to mistransfusions. It may or may not lead to an adverse reaction.

Near Miss

A near miss is an error or deviation from standard procedures or policies that is discovered before the start of the transfusion and that could have led to a wrongful transfusion or to a reaction in a recipient.

Adverse Reaction

An adverse reaction is an undesirable response or effect in a patient temporally associated with the administration of blood or blood component. It may, but need not, be the result of an incident.