08/17/2026
🚨 New Specialty 🚨
It's official: patient blood management (PBM) nursing is now a recognized nursing specialty.
On June 17th, the ANA Board of Directors recognized PBM nursing, approved its scope of practice statement, and acknowledged the specialty standards and competencies, according to the Society for the Advancement of Patient Blood Management (SABM). SABM will now serve as the overarching association, setting continuing education standards and building a formal certification credential.
This is the fifth specialty the ANA has recognized since 2020 and the second in 2026, joining travel health, burn, cannabis, and men's health nursing.
The clinical case is well documented. The International Surgical Outcomes Study found 30.1% of adult elective inpatient surgery patients across 27 countries had preoperative anemia, a condition linked to more transfusions, more complications, and longer stays. Estimates suggest 30% to 40% of transfusions remain unnecessary or avoidable, yet fewer than 100 U.S. hospitals run formal anemia management programs.
The recognition wasn't fast: a SABM workgroup partnered with the ANA back in 2021, and the effort traces back nearly 18 years to founder Sherri Ozawa.
If you've been doing this work for years, your specialty finally has a name. Are you a PBM nurse, or is this a path you'd consider?
(...continued below)
