Bloodless Medicine & Surgery

Established in 2001, our Bloodless Medicine & Surgery program is a leading blood management program in the United States. We make it possible for patients to be treated without receiving any major blood products that were stored or provided by donors.

Our professional staff including more than 300 physicians, surgeons and anesthesiologists is there to guide you during your hospitalization from admission to discharge.

As members of the Society for the Advancement of Blood Management (SABM), they have the knowledge and skills necessary to educate and support patient choices. As trained patient advocates, you can be assured that your wishes will be respected and executed.

Choosing bloodless medicine and surgery may help patients avoid potential bloodborne and immune diseases, allergic reactions and transfusion-associated complications. It may result in faster healing and reduced risk of infection, thereby making for a shorter hospital stay. It can also help conserve the blood supply, in the event of an emergency, that may be more necessary for others.

We offer the following bloodless medical and surgical procedures for those who request non-blood medical management:

Providing high-quality medical care without blood transfusions requires frontline technology and equipment. At Baptist Health we use the following:

• Harmonic Scalpel, Lasers, Argon Beam Coagulator, Electrocautery and Robotic-Assisted Surgery – Reduces blood loss during the procedure

• Intra-Operative/Post-Operative Blood Salvage (Cell Saver) and Hemodilution – Salvages and recirculates patient’s own blood

• Volume Expanders – Intravenous fluids that enhance circulation of patient’s own blood

• Transcutaneous Oxygen Monitoring and Pulse Oximetry – Non-invasively track oxygen levels during surgery

• Blood Conservation Techniques – Frequent blood tests during a hospital stay can mean blood is drawn faster than the body can replace it. Microsampling is a technique that involves drawing smaller amounts of blood for analytic testing.

• Minimally Invasive Surgery – Allows procedures to be performed through a natural opening or a small “keyhole” incision. Minimally invasive procedures promote less pain and blood loss, a shorter hospital stay and cosmetic benefits.

• Same-day Surgery – Some surgical procedures can be performed as outpatient, allowing the patient to go home after surgery without an overnight hospital stay.

• Novalis Tx^TM – Involves quickly delivering precisely focused, high-energy radiation to a localized area to destroy tumors throughout the body that often cannot be treated using traditional surgery, including malignant and benign tumors; brain metastases; arteriovenous malformations and trigeminal neuralgia.

• Interventional Radiology – The minimally Invasive Interventional Radiology Lab offers procedures such as fibroid embolization, liver ablation, aortic endograph, minimally invasive cancer treatment and vertebroplasty.