Revised 08/2025
MDL 216 - Blood Banking (4 CR.)
Course Description
Teaches fundamentals of blood grouping and typing, compatibility testing, antibody screening, component preparation, donor selection, and transfusion reactions and investigation.
Lecture 2 hours. Laboratory 6 hours. Total 8 hours per week.
General Course Purpose
This course will teach the student the basic principles necessary to perform competently in a clinical blood bank. Weekly laboratories will stress actual student performance of the routine blood bank and serology procedures.
Course Prerequisites/Corequisites
- Students should be enrolled in the second year of the Medical Laboratory Technology AAS degree program.
- Prerequisite: MDL 215 with a minimum grade of “C” or program director approval. Completion of the first- year core courses with a grade of “C” or better is required.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of the course students will be able to:
- Discuss genetics and the immune response with regard to Blood Banking.
- Describe distinctive properties of antigens and antibodies.
- Explain theory behind procedures performed in the blood bank.
- Discuss the characteristics and significance of various blood group systems.
- Explain causes and symptoms of hemolytic disease of the newborn.
- Describe the preparation and appropriate use of various blood components including expiration times and storage temperature.
- Describe medical history and criteria necessary for blood donation.
- List various forms of adverse reactions caused by blood transfusion.
- Perform ABO/Rh blood typing.
- Perform antibody screen and identification.
Major Topics to Be Included
- Antigen-antibody characteristics and reactions
- Basic genetics of clinically relevant blood group systems
- ABO system
- Rh system
- Other blood group systems
- Detection and identification of antibodies
- Blood product compatibility
- Blood donation requirements and component preparation
- Hemolytic disease of the newborn
- Quality control
- Required pretransfusion testing