Blood Inventory Distribution by Type in a Total Supply System

Review of blood distribution by blood type in 37 hospitals served by one blood center revealed that bloods collected from a random population of donors and transfused to a random population of recipients show a normal distribution of types. However, 35 per cent of donors who are drawn in the hospitals are Rh‐negative and 19 per cent of bloods returned outdated are Rh‐negative. Examination of the data indicates the low‐frequency blood types are stored out of proportion to their utilization rate and are more likely to be lost through outdating. Alternative solutions are suggested.