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Patient blood management

Care that plans ahead
for your blood

A plain-language, cited guide to transfusion-free (bloodless) care and patient blood management, for patients and families, including people who prefer not to receive blood for religious or personal reasons.

Start here Questions to ask your surgeon
Cited sources Sources checked Nov 7, 2026 Not yet clinician-reviewed
What this is about

Patient blood management in one paragraph

The World Health Organization describes patient blood management (PBM) as a patient-centred approach that addresses iron deficiency, anaemia, problems with clotting and blood loss, in surgical and non-surgical patients.[1] AABB, a professional association for transfusion medicine, calls it an evidence-based, multidisciplinary approach to caring for patients who may need a transfusion.[2]

For most people it means three things: getting your own blood in good shape before treatment, losing as little blood as possible during it, and only transfusing when it's really needed.[3]

Guides

Read at your own pace

Each guide cites its sources at the bottom of the page so you can read the original and share it with your care team.

What bloodless medicine is

How transfusion-free programs work and who they serve.

Read

Alternatives: the evidence

Iron, ESAs, tranexamic acid, cell salvage and transfusion thresholds.

Read

Cell salvage explained

How your own blood can be collected, washed and returned during surgery.

Read

Anemia and iron before surgery

Why checking your blood count early gives you more options.

Read

Questions to ask

A list to take to your surgeon, anesthesiologist and hospital.

Read

Find a program

How to locate a patient blood management or bloodless program.

Read
Written for everyone. Some people decline donated blood because of their faith, including many Jehovah's Witnesses; others for personal reasons, or because they want to limit transfusions where they safely can. This guide doesn't take sides on anyone's reasons. It explains what the published evidence and hospital programs say.

Planning a surgery?

Start the conversation early: weeks before is better than days.

Questions to ask
Questions

Common questions

Is bloodless surgery the same as patient blood management?

They overlap. Patient blood management is a general approach used for many patients.[1, 2] Bloodless or transfusion-free programs apply the same techniques for patients who decline transfusion, and some hospitals run both under one program.[4, 5]

Is this site connected to a hospital or religious group?

No. It's an independent guide, not affiliated with any hospital, medical society or religious organization. See our editorial policy.

Talk to your care team. This page summarizes published research and patient information for general education. It is not medical advice and has not yet been reviewed by a clinician. Your surgeon, anesthesiologist or doctor can tell you what applies to you.
Sources

References

All sources read on Nov 7, 2026. Links go to the publisher, PubMed abstract or official page.

  1. World Health Organization. The urgent need to implement patient blood management: policy brief. 2021. www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240035744
  2. AABB. Patient Blood Management (resource page). www.aabb.org/news-resources/resources/patient-blood-management
  3. Althoff FC, et al. Multimodal Patient Blood Management Program Based on a Three-pillar Strategy: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Ann Surg. 2019;269(5):794-804. PMID 30418206. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30418206
  4. UPMC. Patient Blood Management Program (program page). www.upmc.com/services/patient-blood-management-bloodless-medicine
  5. Englewood Health. Bloodless Medicine and Surgery (program page). www.englewoodhealth.org/service/bloodless-medicine-and-surgery