Test tube shortage rations blood tests
Hospitals told to defer allergy and fertility checks as Covid demand hits supply of test tubes
Doctors have been ordered to stop non-essential blood tests amid a global shortage of key equipment. NHS guidance to GPS and hospital doctors calls for the rationing of tests, with those for cancer prioritised, until shortages of key test tubes are resolved. Becton Dickinson, a supplier of blood collection products, blamed global demand driven by Covid, problems obtaining raw materials and components, and “UK border challenges”.
DOCTORS have been ordered to stop non-essential blood tests as they face a global shortage of key equipment.
NHS England guidance to GPS and hospital doctors, issued yesterday, called for the rationing of tests across the health service until shortages of key test tubes are resolved.
NHS Supply Chain, the agency responsible for sourcing products, said it expected “some improvement” in the supply position next month.
Until then, medics have been ordered to prioritise tests for cancer diagnoses, unwell babies and prenatal screening.
GPS and hospital trusts have been instructed to reduce “non-clinically urgent” tests to safeguard stocks of the crucial diagnostic products.
NHS England said “it is important to make clear that routine tests will be deferred only where it is clinically safe to do so”.
The guidance, revealed by Health Service Journal, says tests that should be deferred or deprioritised include routine infertility testing, allergy testing, vitamin D checks and routine wellness screening. However, genomics tests should remain a high priority.
There is a shortage of tubes made by Becton Dickinson, the key supplier of blood collection products to NHS providers. The manufacturer has said supply issues stem from global demand, driven by Covid, problems obtaining raw materials and components and logistic challenges including “UK border challenges”.
The guidance warns that global shortages of blood tube products also extend to other suppliers.
It says hospital medical directors “should liaise with staff to agree essential testing priorities”.
“Genomics is a high priority in the testing of unwell neonates, prenatal screening and cancer diagnosis. Stock should be used for these tests and should be prioritised accordingly to allow these tests to continue uninterrupted,” the letter continues.
NHS England said that changes to testing “should be made in consultation with individual patients” and it should be made clear that deferred tests will be carried out in the future.
Health officials said the guidance was issued to “optimise the use of blood tubes and ensure that existing stocks are managed in a co-ordinated and equitable way”.
Officials said those over 35 should continue to be offered fertility tests.
The guidance says pathology labs should carry out stock checks, including reviewing the number of tubes in store rooms and circulating in all
‘It is important to make clear that routine tests will be deferred only where it is clinically safe to do so’
areas. Trusts are instructed to continue placing orders at normal levels and not stockpile.
The guidance adds: “Senior clinical oversight is needed around the ordering of tests with a view to reducing the use of the products impacted by the supply disruption.”
Health officials said work was “ongoing” between the Department of Health, NHS Supply Chain and Becton Dickinson to resolve the shortages.
Any organisation likely to run out of blood tubes within 48 hours is urged to notify regional teams.
A spokesman for Becton Dickinson said the company had seen “unprecedented demand” over the past few months for its BD Vacutainer Citrate blood collection tubes, because of their use in Covid testing.
The spokesman added: “BD has ramped up production of these products in both the United States and the United Kingdom in effort to provide as many tubes as possible globally.”