Validating a blood donation awareness tool created using general practitioner and patient acceptability and preferences

Background: There is a need to develop an awareness raising tool for GPs to reach out their patients in order to increase blood donation.The main objective was to create and validate a tool to raise awareness about blood donation that meets acceptability and preference criteria and is applicable in general practice.Material and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in three phases. 1. Tool creation: A stakeholder meeting co-developed three potential tools to raise awareness about blood donation: a consulting room poster, a waiting room poster and a lapel badge for the doctor. Three GPs pilot-tested each tool for one day during their regular consultations. Then, once the pilot was completed each GP assessed acceptability and preference using a semi-structured interview, and patients were also interviewed. 2. Consensual tool selection: An appropriate tool was selected based on pilot data using nominal group technique and expert review. 3. The tool was validated for its acceptability in practice via a quantitative questionnaire distributed electronically to GPs.Results: The consensual tool selected by the nominal group was a combination of elements from all three tools trialled in the pilot, reported to be non-intrusive and convenient for both GPs and patients. Patient responses indicated a high level of acceptability and indicated a strong preference for self-generated discussion of the topic with their GP. In the validation step, 217 responses to the quantitative questionnaire were received: 74.5% of responses fulfilled the acceptability criteria for using this combined tool in general practice. Furthermore, 93.1% of GPs indicated they would use the tool in the proposed format for the purpose of raising awareness.Discussion: The validation of our blood donation awareness tool for use in general practice justifies its evaluation on a larger scale as part of a wider blood donation awareness campaign. (c) 2022 Published by Elsevier Masson SAS on behalf of Societe francaise de transfusion sanguine (SFTS).

Automated summary

This study aimed to develop and validate an awareness raising tool for GPs to increase blood donation. The tool, consisting of elements from different potential tools, was found to be acceptable and preferred by both GPs and patients. The validation process showed a high level of acceptability and willingness to use the tool among GPs.