In 2024, the Vitalité Health Network in New Brunswick earned its designation as a Using Blood Wisely Hospital. Chief of Staff Dr. Éric Levasseur credits the grassroots approach from teams across the network for achieving this important milestone and inspiring new improvement efforts.

Changing practices across an entire health system is no small task. Using Blood Wisely, a national quality improvement program, helps hospitals adopt evidence-based approaches to improve transfusion practices and protect a lifesaving resource.

At Vitalité, which serves nearly 300,000 residents, this work began one zone at a time. Across its hospitals, teams introduced multiple interventions, including updated transfusion guidelines, staff education, and audit and feedback to align practice with national benchmarks. With strong leadership and committed teams, the network built momentum step by step until all four zones achieved designation as Using Blood Wisely Hospitals. This system-wide accomplishment continues to influence how care is delivered across the province.

One challenge for Vitalité was measurement. Without a provincial electronic medical record system in New Brunswick, there was no consistent way to track progress toward the national benchmarks set by Using Blood Wisely. To bridge this gap, Vitalité’s IT and analytics teams developed their own measurement tools. These tools gave hospitals the ability to follow results closely, set objectives, and make improvement adjustments as needed. Though it began as a temporary solution, it quickly became an asset, enabling flexibility and local adaptation across the network. Now, the provincial government is working on building a clinical information system and Dr. Levasseur is hoping that this measurement tool can be embedded from the beginning.

The initiative also sparked broader change across Vitalité. Taking on Using Blood Wisely created momentum for other Choosing Wisely initiatives and encouraged a stronger culture of resource stewardship.

“It has been really energizing,” shared Dr. Levasseur. “Before, all our projects were top down, but now clinical staff, physicians and nurses are suggesting new ideas to us. This is super positive for our network and our future initiatives.”

This cultural shift has carried forward. Vitalité continues to present quarterly results and set new goals, even after meeting benchmarks. With the help of medical students, the network has begun creating more quality improvement projects and working to develop a Choosing Wisely and Using Blood Wisely training module for new staff.

This is work that they are proud to have accomplished and excited to continue. “We view our designation as a badge of honour, or the medal at the end of a marathon,” exclaimed Dr. Levasseur. “It recognizes our dedication to ensuring patients receive the safest, best possible care.”

This designation reflects the collective effort of an entire health network. From frontline staff to leadership, Vitalité’s coordinated approach to Using Blood Wisely shows how a system-wide commitment can lead to safer and more effective transfusion practices for every patient in the province.

This was a team effort and Dr. Levasseur would like to thank Dr. Ihssan Bouhtiauy, Dr. Carole Clavette, Dr. Danièle Thibodeau, Dr. Marc-André Doucet, Dr. Dharm Singh, Komi Victor-Mari Setondji and all of Vitalité’s clinicians who are essential to this project.