CANTON – For the first time in Massachusetts, a whole blood transfusion saved the life of a patient before he could be brought to a hospital.
“Landmark event”
Last Saturday, a 35-year-old man was seriously hurt in a car crash in Braintree. He was in shock, bleeding internally and his blood pressure was low. It took about 45 minutes to remove him from the wreckage.
Paramedics reached out to the Canton Fire Department, which has a new field transfusion program. It was the first time a team in the state gave a whole blood transfusion to a patient in “a prehospital setting,” according to Canton Fire Chief Wendell Robery, who called it a ” landmark event .”
What is a whole blood transfusion?
According to the American Red Cross , whole blood is donated and used to treat “those who have sustained significant blood loss due to trauma or surgery.” Whole blood is not separated into parts like red blood cells, plasma, and platelets.