Economies of scale in blood banking: a study based on data envelopment analysis

Vox Sanguinis
A Pereira

Abstract

Exploitation of economies of scale is often argued in favour of blood-bank consolidation into large regional centres, despite a lack of adequate empirical support. This study was aimed at testing the economies of scale hypothesis in a sample of blood centres in the USA. An input-orientated data envelopment analysis (DEA) was used to calculate the technical efficiency scores of blood centres, and to determine whether they were operating under increasing returns to scale (IRS), constant returns to scale (CRS) or decreasing returns to scale (DRS). Correlation between the blood-centre efficiency score and the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the service area was further investigated. Seventy-one blood centres were included in the analysis. The scale of operations ranged from 7270 to 275,500 red blood cell (RBC) units per year. Six (8%) centres operated under CRS, 29 (55%) under IRS, and most of their technical inefficiency was scale-independent, and 26 (37%) operated under DRS, and most of their technical inefficiency was size-related. Efficiency scores were unrelated to any demographic or socioeconomic characteristics of the blood centre service area. Within the size range of blood centres included in this study, e...Continue Reading

References

Jul 29, 1998·Clinical and Laboratory Haematology·J F GuestR F Cookson
Jun 24, 2000·Transfusion·R L ThurerS J Slichter
Jul 1, 2005·Transfusion·Christine Pitocco, Thomas R Sexton
Sep 15, 2005·Medical Decision Making : an International Journal of the Society for Medical Decision Making·Brian CusterMichael P Busch
Jun 1, 2002·Expert Review of Pharmacoeconomics & Outcomes Research·Arturo Pereira

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Citations

Oct 27, 2007·The European Journal of Health Economics : HEPAC : Health Economics in Prevention and Care·Marketta VeiholaHarri Sintonen
Feb 3, 2016·Transfusion·Alexandra E Nielsen, Nathan D Nielsen
Jun 19, 2007·Injury·Biswadev MitraMichael Bailey
Dec 21, 2006·Transfusion·Marketta VeiholaRiitta Kekomäki
Jul 13, 2020·Transfusion·Suzanne R ThibodeauxUNKNOWN Biomedical Excellence for Safer Transfusion (BEST) Collaborative

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