Differences in the Perception of Blood Transfusion Risk between Laypeople and Transfusion Experts in Korea / 대한수혈학회지

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Generally, laypeople perceive blood transfusion risk differently from experts like physicians. Acknowledging such differences may improve risk communication. This study characterized how blood transfusion experts in Korea perceive the blood transfusion risks compared to laypeople in a past study. METHODS: A one-month e-mail survey targeting blood transfusion experts was conducted in October 2007. The questionnaire was designed to assess the demographics of the respondents, their response to the term 'blood transfusion', and the perceived risks of a transfusion. In all, 103 interviews were completed. RESULTS: The words evoked by the term 'blood transfusion' included blood, blood donation, life, surgery, and risk. About 24.2~31.1% of the respondents gave a moderate or high rating for the perceived risk of blood transfusion. About 72.8% of experts agreed that the blood supplied in Korea is safe, while 55.6% of laypeople agreed to the same question. If they needed a transfusion, about 85.4% of the respondents replied that they would accept the blood transfusion, and experts were more willing to receive a blood transfusion than laypeople. The relative perceived blood transfusion risk was 4.4+/-2.8 (out of 10), which was similar to the result with laypeople. CONCLUSION: Experts, as compared to laypeople, think that the blood supplied in Korea is safer and had higher acceptance rates of transfusion. Awareness of such differences may be helpful when sharing medical decisions between medical staff and their patients at blood transfusion scenes.