Blood Product Fractionation for Transfusion Training

Learning Outcomes

• Apply standard operating procedures for the separation of whole blood into components using centrifugation and other fractionation techniques.
• Demonstrate the correct labeling, storage, and transportation of blood products to maintain integrity and traceability.
• Evaluate quality control parameters for each blood component to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Implement safety protocols to minimise risks of contamination, haemolysis, and adverse transfusion reactions.
• Analyse the indications and contraindications for the use of different blood components in clinical practice.
• Document fractionation processes accurately in accordance with laboratory information systems and quality management standards.

Target Audience

This course is designed for medical laboratory technologists, blood bank technicians, and healthcare professionals involved in blood transfusion services who require competence in blood product fractionation.

Prerequisites

None — open enrollment.

Course Outline

Practicals

Overview

Hands-on practicals are essential for learners to apply fractionation techniques in a simulated laboratory environment. These sessions cover component separation, pathogen reduction procedures, and quality control testing to reinforce theoretical knowledge and ensure competency in safe blood product preparation.

Practical Activities

• Whole Blood Component Separation — Learners perform centrifugation and separation of whole blood into packed red cells, buffy coat, and plasma using standard blood bank equipment. (6h)
• Plasma Fractionation by Cold Ethanol Method — Learners simulate the Cohn fractionation process using a scaled-down method to isolate albumin and immunoglobulin fractions from plasma. (6h)
• Pathogen Reduction of Platelets — Learners apply a pathogen reduction system (e.g., INTERCEPT) to platelet concentrates, following manufacturer instructions for illumination and storage. (6h)
• Quality Control Testing of Blood Products — Learners conduct routine QC tests on prepared blood components, including hematocrit, platelet count, and sterility testing. (6h)
• Simulated Batch Release and Traceability Exercise — Learners simulate the batch release process by reviewing QC data, verifying labels, and completing release documentation for a batch of blood products. (3h)

Summatives

Each delegate is assessed continuously throughout the course via daily exercises, scored practical assignments, and a final summative test at the end.

Practical Assignments — 30%

Practical assignments are observed and scored against a rubric during the practical sessions. Each delegate's practical mark is averaged into a single 100% score and contributes 30% to the final total.

Daily Exercises — 20%

Every training day ends with a multiple-choice exercise scored out of 100%. The scores from each daily exercise are averaged across the duration of the course to produce a Daily Average mark, which contributes 20% to the final total.

Final Test — 50%

On the last day a final summative test is written. It is a multiple-choice paper with multiple-answer questions: each question may have more than one correct option, and a single wrong selection on a question marks the entire question wrong — no partial credit. The final test is scored out of 100% and contributes 50% to the overall mark.

Final Total

Component	Out of	Weight
Practical Assignments (rubric-scored)	100%	30%
Daily Average (multiple choice)	100%	20%
Final Test (multi-answer multiple choice)	100%	50%
Final Total	—	100%

All marks are recorded on the AATICD LMS and visible to each learner under their account.

Certificate

How it works

• Certificates are auto-generated on the AATICD LMS as soon as the marks pass the 50% threshold.
• Each certificate is a branded PDF with the delegate's name, the course title, the unit standard ID, NQF level, credits, and the date of issue.
• You can download or print your certificate from your LMS dashboard at any time after issue — there's no reissue fee and no expiry date.
• If you scored under 50% you can sit the final test again at the next scheduled session at no extra cost.

Where to find it

Sign in to the LMS, open your dashboard, and your certificates appear under My Certificates. Each entry has a View / Download button and a print option.

Training Discounts

Group discounts apply automatically — the more delegates you enrol, the greater the saving. Discounts are calculated at 3% per 5 delegates, scaling up to 40% off for 100+ delegates.

Delegates	Discount
5	3% off
10	6% off
15	9% off
20	12% off
25	15% off
30	18% off
50	30% off
75	35% off
100	40% off

3% discount per 5 delegates, up to 40% off for 100+ delegates. Contact us for a custom group quote.