SBB History and General Information
History
The Armed Services Blood Bank Fellowship began at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Washington, D.C. in 1958. The fellowship was established to train a cadre of officers to staff blood programs, hospital transfusion services, and donor centers in times of peace and war. In 1966, the fellowship was transferred to the US Army Medical Research Laboratory at Fort Knox, KY. In July 1974, the fellowship was realigned under the Blood Bank Center at Fort Knox. The fellowship was transferred to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.in July 1976 without interruption in training. In September 2011 the Fellowship transferred to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, MD. After 65 years of existence, the program has graduated 286 students (130 Army officers, 77 Air Force officers, 73 Navy officers, 4 international military officers, and 2 civilians).
Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
The Blood Bank Fellowship is currently located within the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) Department of Pathology. The program provides a dedicated classroom for student lectures. Over 40 weeks of the didactic and clinical training are conducted at WRNMMC. The WRNMMC medical treatment facility is a 300-bed hospital located in Bethesda, MD. There are 17,000 inpatient admissions per year and a staff of over 6,000. Officer health and safety procedures will be that of WRNMMC. Officers from all three services will be afforded an opportunity to meet with their respective Service Blood Program Officers while enrolled in the program
Fort Belvoir Community Hospital
Fort Belvoir Community Hospital serves as an additional clinical site for transfusion service and administrative operations.
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Fellowship students will attend lectures and a Stem Cell clinical rotation at NIH .
Other:
Academic Affiliation
The Blood Bank Fellowship Program is affiliated with The George Washington University (GWU), Washington, D.C. In accordance with the affiliation agreement, Blood Bank Fellows receive graduate academic credit for didactic and practical training. The academic credit received while enrolled in the fellowship applies towards a Master of Science in Health Sciences in the Field of Immunohematology. Masters degree completion requires six additional months after completion of the one year Fellowship Program, as well as a research project. The total length of the assignment is 18 months. The total number of credits is 55 (34 SBB and 21 MSHS) Fellowship students will be evaluated via written exam and practical laboratory exams using unknown specimens. If at any time a student’s level of performance drops below that required by the school, the student may be removed from the program. Probation and appeal procedures will be those of WRNMMC and GWU. Instructors and research advisors for the Blood Bank Fellowship are awarded Adjunct Faculty or Lecturer designations by GWU for their involvement with the program.
Costs/Pay
Tuition is covered by the military service branch for each student. Cost of books for the GWU courses are paid by the fellows, but may be reimbursed by the member’s service. While attending the program, each student will receive their normal active duty service pay.
Clinical Site Visits
Fellowship students will have to opportunity to participate in a wide variety of site visits. Each visit provides a unique opportunity which is not always offered outside the military. The Armed Services Whole Blood Processing Laboratory (ASWBPL) East, located at McGuire AFB in Trenton, NJ, site visit provides a strategic view of the military blood delivery into areas of active conflict. Participation in the West Point blood drive, an annual Army tradition, provides the students with an appreciation for large scale donor center operations. Monthly visits to the Armed Services Blood Program Office (ASBPO) located in Fall Church, VA provide insight into military blood operations in garrison and in theater. Students will rotate through the Armed Services Blood Bank Center (ASBBC) and observe the production of blood components while learning about the production of frozen blood, produced at an alternate location. Other site visits include the Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Harley Davidson Vehicle Operations factory .
Research Project and Presentations
Each student will be required to complete a graduate level research project while working under a Research Advisor. At the end of the research term the student will submit his/her work to a journal for publication. Additionally throughout the year, each student will give a series of oral presentations to include: reviews of journal articles, formal blood group system lectures, and the Armed Service Blood Program Office culminating with the presentation of his/her research project