CoxHealth admits blood transfusion patient received wrong blood type

Megan Knowles -

In what Springfield, Mo.-based CoxHealth officials are calling an "isolated event," a patient who needed a blood transfusion at Springfield-based Cox South Hospital was given the wrong blood type in late March, according to KY3 News.

Although CoxHealth spokesperson Kaitlyn McConnell confirmed to KY3 News the incident occurred, the hospital has yet to release the exact date it happened, who was involved in the error, or the patient's condition, because those questions violate patient privacy. The Greene County medical examiner told KY3 News the office has not been alerted to any deaths related to hospital blood transfusions.

CoxHealth said this was an "isolated event" and hospital administrators are making efforts to re-educate staff to ensure the mistake does not occur again.

"A patient at Cox South received a blood transfusion of the incorrect blood type. This was an isolated event. Our highest priority is patient safety, and we deeply regret this error," CoxHealth said in a statement obtained by KY3 News.

"This mistake, which occurred in late March, was due to human error," the statement reads. "In the weeks since, we have reported the incident through all of the required channels, both internally and externally, and have re-educated staff to reduce the risk of it happening again. We have an obligation to our patients to protect their privacy and therefore cannot comment further."

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