Encouraging Blood Donation in Patients With a Blood Type in Short Supply

Health Behavior Clinical Trial

Official title:

Encouraging Blood Donation in Patients With a Blood Type in Short Supply

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT05135325
• Other study ID #: 2021-0476
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: November 15, 2021
• Est. completion date: June 6, 2022

Study information

• Verified date: July 2022
• Source: Geisinger Clinic
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

As of November 2021, partly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a months-long national shortage of several types of blood in the U.S. (O-Pos, O-Neg, A-Neg, B-Neg, and AB-Neg), which has extended to a local blood shortage within the Geisinger community. The broad aim of this collaborative healthcare operations quality improvement project is to determine whether a message indicating that a patient's own blood type is in short supply increases the likelihood that they will donate, compared to a message that mentions a blood shortage without referencing the patient's blood type, or no message at all. Scientists in Geisinger's Behavioral Insights Team (BIT), part of Geisinger's Steele Institute for Health Innovation, will collaborate with Miller Keystone, where Geisinger refers patients who wish to donate blood and from whom Geisinger receives blood for clinical purposes. Patients with one of the needed blood types will be randomized to receive 1) a message about a blood shortage that does not specify the blood types in short supply or their own blood type (no-blood-type message), 2) the same message modified slightly to specify the recipient's blood type, and to mention that their blood type is in short supply (blood-type message), or 3) no message (shortage control group). A second no-contact control group of patients without any of the needed blood types will also be observed (no-shortage control group). Both the blood-type and no-blood-type messages are informed by behavioral science, emphasizing supply needs in local hospitals and providing community-relevant examples of why someone might need blood (e.g., farming or industrial accidents). The BIT will compare how many patients in each group choose to donate blood. They hypothesize that: 1) patients who receive either message will be more likely to donate than patients who receive no message; and 2) patients who receive the blood-type message will be more likely to donate than those who receive the no-blood-type message. With respect to the latter hypothesis, informing the recipient that they have one of the needed blood types may increase their perception that they are in a semi-unique position to help someone in need as compared to a more general message that may suffer from a diffusion of responsibility effect.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 59093
• Est. completion date: June 6, 2022
• Est. primary completion date: June 6, 2022
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Documented blood type in short supply (for message groups and shortage control group)

• Documented blood type not in short supply (for no-shortage control group)

• Age 18+

Exclusion Criteria:

• Hemoglobin test result < 12.5 within the 3 months prior to list creation

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Health Behavior

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Patient portal message
Portal message encourages patients to donate blood
• Social responsibility
Message specifies that there is a shortage of the patient's blood type

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	Geisinger	Danville	Pennsylvania

Sponsors (1)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Geisinger Clinic

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Number of Participants Who Attended a Donation Appointment	Attended a donation appointment within 6 weeks of their message send date, regardless of whether they donated. This outcome includes patients who were unable to donate for any reason (e.g. low hemoglobin) or patients who showed up to the appointment but decided to leave before donating.	Within 6 weeks of the final message send date
Secondary	Number of Participants Who Successfully Donated Blood	Attended a donation appointment within 6 weeks of their message send date and successfully donated, excluding patients who were turned away from or left their appointment without donating.	Within 6 weeks of the final message send date
Secondary	Number of Participants Who Scheduled a Blood Donation Appointment	Scheduled an appointment within 2 weeks of their message send date.	Within 2 weeks of the final message send date