Containing costs in the blood bank by reducing unnecessary crossmatching.

The author proposes that the maximum surgical blood order schedule (MSBOS) can serve as a paradigm for test reduction systems in other clinical laboratories. He begins by reviewing briefly the development of crossmatch reduction systems in hospital blood banks, explaining why they have been widely accepted, and he suggests later that the number of type and screen tests performed can also be reduced as part of the effort to curb unnecessary testing. Finally, he proposes some qualitative changes in the way the type and screen is performed, including the "clinical antibody screen" and the "modified antibody screen."