Development and evaluation of checklists to support the recruitment of committed hematopoietic stem cell donors
Warren B Fingrut1,2, Angela C Chen1,3, Meagan Green4
1Stem Cell Club, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Insights
Checklists improved hematopoietic stem cell donor recruitment by reducing errors and increasing match rates. These tools enhance donor selection processes globally.
Area of Science:
- Hematology
- Transplantation Science
- Public Health
Background:
- Checklists are vital memory aids in healthcare for enhancing patient outcomes.
- This study focuses on the creation and assessment of checklists specifically designed to aid in the recruitment of committed allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell donors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To enhance adherence to best practices in donor recruitment.
- To minimize errors during the donor registration and selection process.
- To standardize procedures at stem cell drives for hematopoietic stem cell donors.
Main Methods:
- Checklists were developed iteratively with stakeholder input, covering donor recruitment, informed consent, documentation, registration, and sample collection.
- The study evaluated checklist effectiveness by comparing pre- and post-implementation data (November 2011–November 2019) from Stem Cell Club, a Canadian donor recruitment organization.
- Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to analyze recruitment outcomes, error rates, match rates, and recruiter feedback.
Main Results:
- Checklist implementation coincided with an increase in recruited donors, including those from needed demographic groups, with registrant numbers rising from 4118 to 10,621.
- A significant reduction in errors was observed, decreasing from 13.2% to 1.9%.
- The match rate of recruited donors saw a three-fold increase, from 0.024% to 0.075%, indicating improved donor quality.
Conclusions:
- Developed checklists effectively support hematopoietic stem cell donor recruitment.
- Checklist implementation was positively received by recruiters and led to demonstrably better recruitment outcomes, including fewer errors and higher match rates.
- These checklists offer a valuable, standardized tool for donor recruitment organizations globally.
Background:
Checklists are memory recall tools used across healthcare to improve outcomes. Here, we describe the development and evaluation of checklists to support recruitment of committed allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell donors.
Study Design And Methods:
Checklists were developed with the following objectives: (1) improve best-practice adherence; (2) reduce errors; and (3) support standardization at stem cell drives. Topics included: recruiting needed donors; securing informed consent; maintaining good-documentation practices; and supervising registration and tissue sample collection. Checklists were iteratively revised with input from stakeholders. We evaluated the checklists by examining recruitment outcomes and errors (i.e., preventing registrants from being listed as donors) pre- (11/2011-8/2016) and post- (9/2016-11/2019) implementation by the Canadian donor recruitment organization Stem Cell Club. Quantitative and qualitative methods were employed to analyze recruiters' perspectives on the checklists.
Results:
The checklists supported recruitment of donors from needed demographic groups as Stem Cell Club expanded its recruitment effort from 4118 registrants (60% male, 58% non-European) pre-implementation to 10,621 (52% male, 56% non-European) post-implementation. Checklist implementation was associated with a marked reduction in errors (from 13.2% to 1.9%) and a three-fold increase in the match rate of recruited donors (from 0.024% to 0.075%). Qualitative and quantitative analysis of recruiter feedback supported that the checklists' objectives were realized from the recruiter perspective.
Discussion:
We developed checklists to support donor recruitment and showed that their implementation was valued by recruiters and associated with both reduced errors and improved donor recruitment outcomes. The checklists are relevant to donor recruitment organizations worldwide.
Related Concept Videos
01:22Bone Marrow Sampling and Transplants
The transplant begins with high doses of chemotherapy and radiation treatment, which aim to destroy...
01:01Regulation of Hematopoietic Stem Cells