The idea of Secured Blood Transfusion has garnered attention since the 80's. In the 1990 s HIV and Hepatitis C virus infections were discovered in Hemophilia patients across the USA, UK, France, Canada and Japan, which demanded a need for the establishment of a surveillance system to ensure transfusion safety. This Surveillance system is now widely regarded as Hemovigilance^{[1] .}The term hemovigilance was first used in France in 1990, and then it was developed in 1994 by the French blood agency as a national system of surveillance and alert from blood collection to the follow-up of the recipients.

WHO States,” Haemovigilance is a set of surveillance procedures covering the entire transfusion chain, from the donation and processing of blood and its components, to their provision and transfusion to patients and their followup. Haemovigilance includes the monitoring, reporting, investigation and analysis of adverse events related to the donation, processing and transfusion of blood, as well as the development and implementation of recommendations to prevent their occurrence or recurrence^{. [2]}

Hemovigilance is mainly intended to improve the safety of blood transfusion. On December 10, 2012 The Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) launched the Hemovigilance program of India (HvPi), nationwide, with the National Institute of Biologicals in Uttar Pradesh serving as its coordinating center. HvPi collaborates with the pharmacovigilance program of India (PvPi) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India

Haemo-Vigil Software has been created to gather information from medical colleges and hospitals across India ^[3]. The Transfusion Medicine Department of the relevant medical colleges or hospitals must report all details and evaluations of the transfusion reaction that took place according to the Transfusion Reaction Reporting Form (TRRF).

The TRRF form is then sent to the National Institute of Biologicals in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, where it is collected, collated, analyzed, reviewed for completeness, and quality checked through core group hemovigilance and hemovigilance advisory committee, which consists of a signal review panel, core training panel, and quality review panel for the preparation of SOP, guidance documents, and training manuals, as well as training and feedback for technical associates in medical colleges and hospitals^[4].Interns are frequently involved in patient care and transfusion-related activities; their KAP influences reporting of transfusion reactions and blood safety practices. Assessing KAP helps identify gaps for targeted training, strengthening Hv implementation, and improving patient safety. Thus, this study aims to Access the Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of   Hemovigilance among Interns in a Tertiary care Hospital.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

After obtaining IEC approval, the nature and purpose of the study was explained to the study participants. This cross-sectional questionnaire study was conducted among MBBS interns (CRMIs) in the Department of Pharmacology-Melmaruvathur Adhiparasakthi institute of medical sciences and research. The Duration of the study was 3 Months.117 CRMIs was provided with a sheet containing 20 – Pre validated questionnaire (Knowledge -10, Attitude -5,Practice -5) pertaining to Hemovigilance and 30 minutes was provided to them for answering. Data was analyzed using SPSS Software version 29. Continuous data was expressed as mean and standard deviation while categorical data was expressed as Proportions. Difference between groups was accessed in “t” Test.

INCLUSION CRITERIA:

CRMIs willing to participate and have given written Informed consent.

EXCLUSION CRITERIA:

CRMIs Decline to participate

RESULTS

Among the 123 participants, females constituted 63.52% (n=70), while males accounted for 36.48% (n=53)

Table: 1 Knowledge towards Hemovigilance (Parenthesis indicates percentage)

Table 1 indicate varied levels of knowledge toward  hemovigilance among the 123 participants. 49.6% respondents reported having awareness about hemovigilance, while a considerably 91.1% had knowledge of transfusion reactions. Only 18.7% had attended seminars or workshops related to hemovigilance. Most participants (74.8%) were aware of patient preparation prior to issuing blood units, and 63.4% knew about appropriate storage of issued blood bags before infusion. Awareness regarding privacy and security of hemovigilance data was relatively low (28.5%).

Table 2: Attitude towards Hemovigilance (Parenthesis indicates percentage:)

Table 2 indicate mixed levels of awareness regarding the responsibilities related to blood transfusion.  51.2% of the participants believed that blood transfusion poses a risk to patients, while 92.7% agreed that reporting blood transfusions is essential. 81.3% felt that every institute should be enrolled in hemovigilance programs. However, only 25.2% had encountered situations where blood bags needed to be discarded due to ward-related issues, 26.8% reported documenting any reaction during their training.

Table 3: Practice towards Hemovigilance (Parenthesis indicates percentage:)

27.6% reported having pricked themselves with a needle during blood collection. 39% aware of the correct reporting procedures. Nevertheless, an overwhelming majority 90.2% acknowledged that reporting transfusion reactions benefits patients, reflecting strong recognition of its importance. Only 13% had encountered, issue of the wrong blood group bag and discovered hours late. Additionally, 18.7% had suspected donors who were later tested for HIV.

DISCUSSION

This study assessed the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of hemovigilance among MBBS interns in a tertiary care teaching hospital. As a frontline health care trainess frequently involved in transfusion processes, nterns play a crucial role in identifying and reporting transfusion reactions. In this study only 49.6% of interns reported awareness of hemovigilance which is consistent with Sharma et.al from India, where hemovigilance is still evolving as a structured component of medical training ^[3,4].

91.1% indicating an adequate understanding of general transfusion medicine concepts. However, awareness of national hemovigilance systems, reporting procedures, and digital tools, including Haemo-Vigil software, remained low (18.7%), which is in agreement with Agrawal A, et al. highlighting poor exposure to formal reporting systems among medical undergraduates ^[5].

Only 18.7% of participants had attended seminars or workshops on hemovigilance, echoing Bhattacharya P, et al findings that structured training opportunities remain insufficient across Indian teaching hospitals ^[6]. Participants demonstrated a largely positive attitude toward hemovigilance. (92.7%) agreed that reporting transfusion events is essential, similar to findings in studies by Sahu et al. and Mittal et al^[7].

However only 26.8 % had documented a transfusion reaction during training, indicating insufficient practical exposure or low exposureor low emphasis on documentation. Effective Hemovigilance requires close collabaration between blood banks and healthcare professionals in reporting adverse events. Success depends upon creating Awareness among healthcare professionals about Hemovigilance and its parameters. Understanding about Hemovigilance will also significantly improve the impression of Reporting Blood Transfusion responses, which will ultimately result in more preventing Reactions in the future.

LIMITATIONS

• Single-center study
• Self-reported questionnaire
• Limited assessment of practical skills (Did not include direct observation of practice)
• Possible recall bias

RECOMMENDATIONS:

1.Strengthen undergraduate curriculum.

2. Mandatory Periodic training workshops
3. Promote a reporting culture

CONCLUSION

Interns possess positive attitudes and reasonable clinical awareness, their knowledge of structured reporting mechanisms and digital hemovigilance tools remains inadequate. Enhanced awareness and training are essential for strengthening the Hemovigilance Programme of India (HvPi) and ensuring safer transfusion practices, ultimately improving patient outcomes.

FUNDING: Self

CONFLICT OF INTEREST: None

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: The authors would like to thank all the participants for their   contribution.   

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