RESUMO
SUMMARY: Along with the increasing expenses of the blood system, enhancing efficiency is a necessary task at blood establishments. Labour is the primary expense and is the most likely area for efficiency improvements. The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the relative efficiency of component production departments from the perspective of labour and cost. The data set was from 13 European blood centres and blood banks for 3 years and was analysed using data envelopment analysis (DEA). Working hours, estimated total costs, produced red blood cells and produced platelets were used in DEA modelling. Comparative analyses included an empirical cost model, in which the costs of working hours were adjusted with purchasing power parities to equalize the costs between countries. Estimated total costs were used to determine the savings potential of production, the unit cost and the economic value of discarded components (waste cost). Results showed a wide variation in labour efficiency (25-100%), in unit cost (fraction of labour costs in component production department) and in cost efficiency (13-100%). Savings potential both in labour and in costs was more than 50% in six departments in all study years. Median waste cost was 9.4% of estimated total costs in the four largest departments and 6.6% in the other departments. Thus, size of department was not a measure of its efficiency. Simple empirical analyses are applicable in efficiency comparisons and can encourage blood establishments to improve their resource management.
