From the Central Office
Member Spotlight Q&A
Transfusion Practitioner Sub-Group Co-Chairs Rachel Moss & Jana Vanden Broeck
The Transfusion Practitioner group was established in 2016 and is a sub-group of the Clinical Transfusion Working Party. This is a group of professionals with an interest in and working with or as Transfusion Practitioners to promote best practice in blood management and transfusion safety. Our objectives are to develop educational tools and resources, create a network that promotes the sharing of knowledge, research and ideas, as well as act as a forum for discussion.
Chair Rachel Moss RN, MSc, FBBTS
What started your interest in Blood Transfusion?
I was working as an adult intensive care nurse and had become quite senior but couldn’t see where my next career move was. The hospital where I worked advertised for a Specialist Practitioner of Transfusion (SPOT) which was our original title. It looked like something I would enjoy. That was in 2003 and 23 years later I am one of the longest serving Transfusion Practitioners in the UK and probably the world!
How did you get involved in ISBT?
During the ISBT Congress in London in 2015, the Clinical Transfusion Working Party (CTWP) had a session about the role of the Transfusion Practitioner. I was invited to represent the UK and speak about the role here, along with colleagues from Australia (Linley Beilby) and the Netherlands (Rozemarjin Deelen). After that meeting in London we set up the Transfusion Practitioner group in 2016 with Linley as chair and me as deputy. In 2024 I took over as chair with Jana as co-chair since 2025.
What have been the most rewarding times in your career?
The first is finishing my MSc in 2016. This was a huge personal achievement for me. My dissertation was on human factors and it has proved to be so useful as 10 years later understanding human factors is crucial in patient safety and blood transfusion processes. The second was receiving the British Blood Transfusion Society (BBTS) Gold Medal award in 2025 which is awarded for exceptional and long-standing services to the Society and to the practice of blood transfusion in the UK. A very proud moment. Finally the opportunities that being part of ISBT have given me. I have published papers with ISBT colleagues related to the TP role in both Vox Sanguinis and Transfusion Medicine and had the opportunity to speak not only at ISBT meetings, but also in Australia at ANZBTS, Oman at the Omani Society of Haematology, Dubai at WHX Labs and South Korea at the Laboratory Medicine Congress. These opportunities to meet and speak to colleagues from all over the world about our shared interest in blood transfusion is what ISBT is all about.
What energizes you most at work?
Someone commented recently about my enthusiasm for the TP role and blood transfusion. After 23 years it is still there. There is still much to be done, both in terms of patient safety and making sure all clinical and nursing colleagues that manage blood transfusion understand not only how precious it is but how to make sure it is only given when needed and given carefully. The principles of patient blood management are slowly embedding around the world but we still have a long way to go. And the Transfusion Practitioner role is so critical to everything to do with blood transfusion. From donor to recipient, the TP has sight of everything each step of the way.
What do you do in your spare time?
Food and cooking are a huge part of my life. Another reason for enjoying my ISBT travel opportunities is to eat the local food. I am also a very amateur gardener, but have a more “survival of the fittest” rather than a nurturing approach to managing my plants. Finally my husband and I are the most indulgent cat parents you could ever meet fully embracing permissive parenting of a cat that is thoroughly spoiled. Finally, is there anything you to add or to say to our Transfusion Today readers and ISBT members?
Listen to our podcasts! The TP group have recorded and published 15 podcasts, all very different, but all related to the TP role. The podcasts are called Transfusion Practitioners Across The World (available on the ISBT website on the TP subgroup pages) and we are really proud of them.
Transfusion Practitioners Session at ISBT Milan 2025
Transfusion Practicioners Network Session Group Photo at ISBT Gothenburg 2023
Co-Chair Jana Vanden Broeck
What started your interest in Blood Transfusion?
A vacancy came up for a Transfusion Practitioner in my hospital. The role appealed to me because I wanted to work in quality management, as I had just started a Master’s degree in healthcare management and policy. Before that, I had worked as a midwife, but I was not deterred by the prospect of immersing myself in a completely new field. The chair of the Hospital Transfusion Committee encouraged me to contribute to discussions on policy and practical approaches, even though I was still very new to the field. This motivated me to develop my knowledge further and continue working in transfusion. The world of transfusion is so broad and diverse that I still feel I have only grasped a fraction of it. My main interests are implementation, behaviour change and data visualisation, but I find that these interests are expanding to areas such as plasma supply for plasma-derived medicinal products and blood shortage preparedness and response, reflecting current needs at both national and international level. These topics are also particularly relevant to me because, alongside my role as a Transfusion Practitioner, I work part-time as a project coordinator for the Federal Public Service Health on projects related to transfusion, Patient Blood Management, blood supply and emergency preparedness.
How did you get involved in ISBT?
The chair of the Hospital Transfusion Committee has always encouraged me to pursue further training and professional development. This gave me the opportunity to attend ISBT congresses, the first of which was in Dubai in 2016. It was there that I was introduced to the Transfusion Practitioners Sub-Working Party and met, among others, Rachel Moss and Linley Bielby. I subsequently joined the Clinical Transfusion Working Party, followed by the Transfusion Practitioners Sub-Working Party in 2018, where I have served as co-chair since 2025, and the Education Sub-Working Party in 2021.
What have been the most rewarding times in your career?
Collaborating with international experts is something I particularly value, as I feel there is so much we can learn from one another. Many of us are working on similar projects, so we should take the opportunity to inspire each other, share experiences and make progress more efficiently.
A few months ago, I organised a symposium in Brussels covering, among other topics, ensuring continuity of the blood supply during key risk scenarios. I had organised symposia before, but this time I also coordinated the invitation of Belgian and international speakers through my professional network. Hearing the positive feedback from participants on the day itself brought a real sense of relief and was extremely rewarding and motivating for the future.
What energizes you most at work?
Connecting with people involved in different areas of transfusion, learning from their expertise and exchanging ideas. I also really enjoy bringing people together: sharing different perspectives often sparks new ideas and creates opportunities to develop them together.
What do you do in your spare time?
My hobbies have evolved over the years. I spent around eight years salsa dancing and started taking tango lessons about a year ago, but for the past four years my main focus has been competitive swimming. Backstroke is my favourite stroke. I also occasionally take part in swimrun events, a relatively new sport that combines open-water swimming in lakes, rivers or the sea with trail running, often through challenging and picturesque landscapes.
Finally, is there anything you to add or to say to our Transfusion Today readers and ISBT members?
Thank you for this great community!
