Dashain exodus deepens blood shortage in Valley

Blood supplies across Kathmandu Valley have fallen to a critical level during Dashain. The Central Blood Transfusion Service and most other blood banks report no fresh blood, whole blood, or packed cells available. This matters because hospitals continue treating patients who need transfusions, even as donations decline.

Parek BK waited all day for two pints for his one-year-old daughter, who suffered serious burns and needed surgery. Officials said hundreds of relatives visit the blood bank daily, but staff can help only a few. Empty refrigerators show how little reserve remains.

The shortage is linked to suspended donation drives and closed colleges. The Nepal Red Cross Society has appealed to organisations, offices, security agencies, and individuals to organise collections. Without more donors, urgent operations and treatments across Kathmandu, Lalitpur, and Bhaktapur may be delayed or placed at greater risk.

A blood bank is a service that receives donated blood, stores it, and provides it to hospitals or patients who need transfusions. It helps match available supplies with medical needs, especially during surgery, childbirth, cancer treatment, or severe illness. Its work matters because hospitals often need blood immediately.

The Central Blood Transfusion Service identified three types in the shortage: fresh blood, whole blood, and packed cells. These are blood components or preparations kept for clinical use. Patients’ relatives often contact or visit blood banks when hospitals require specific amounts, such as two pints before an operation.

In the Valley, the storage system is failing because refrigerators are empty. Officials said most blood banks have no stock, while demand remains high. Donation camps and organisations replenish supplies, so restarting regular collections is essential for hospitals to receive blood when needed.

Kathmandu Valley faces a striking daily imbalance between blood needs and donations. Hospitals and blood banks require more than 400 pints each day, but collections have dropped to around 20. The reported difference is therefore more than 380 pints daily, leaving supplies unable to keep pace with treatment needs.

That shortage is visible in the blood bank’s empty refrigerators. Officials said hundreds of relatives come every day, but staff can help only a few. Patients may need blood before surgery, yet their families are forced to search for donors themselves. Parek BK, for example, could not find a donor for his daughter.

The shortfall may continue while donation camps remain suspended and colleges stay closed. Officials are asking banks, government offices, security agencies, and organisations to arrange drives. More collections are needed quickly to rebuild stocks and prevent treatment delays.

Dashain worsens the Valley’s blood shortage because normal sources of donors disappear during the holiday. Colleges close, and many students return to their villages. Regular blood donation camps are also suspended, so fewer people are available or organised to give blood while hospitals continue needing it.

The holidays began on October 11, and most colleges were not expected to reopen until after Chhath, more than two weeks later. Officials said only a few camps were being held each day, with low turnout. The break therefore affects both donor numbers and the schedule for organised collections.

The shortage can deepen if the holiday continues without replacement drives. The Red Cross has asked organisations and institutions to mobilise donors. Banks, government offices, the Army, Police, and Armed Police Force were all urged to help organise collections during the crisis.

Patients who depend most on timely blood include people needing urgent or routine surgery, kidney-failure patients, people with thalassemia, cancer patients, and women requiring Caesarean sections. Their treatment may require blood at a precise time. If supplies are unavailable, relatives must search for donors while doctors wait.

Parek BK’s daughter had serious burn injuries and another surgery scheduled. He needed two pints by Wednesday evening but could not find a donor. Radha Sharma also struggled to find two pints after her husband’s haemoglobin fell to 5.4. These cases show how quickly families can face danger and uncertainty.

Urgent surgery patients are particularly vulnerable because postponement can interrupt treatment and create extra costs. Doctors warned that people who travel to Kathmandu from outside the Valley may pay more if operations are delayed. Continued shortages could affect patients across several hospitals and districts.

When blood cannot be found, doctors may be unable to carry out planned or urgent procedures on schedule. Patients who already have dangerously low haemoglobin may struggle to receive needed support. The article warns that shortages threaten people with kidney failure, thalassemia, cancer, and women requiring Caesarean sections.

Radha Sharma said her husband’s haemoglobin had fallen to 5.4, while doctors wanted it above 7. Bir Hospital asked her to arrange two pints immediately, but neither the hospital nor the blood bank could provide them. Other families waited for blood before operations, including surgery for serious burns and heart-valve disease.

The immediate consequence is delay, uncertainty, and greater pressure on families to find donors. Doctors also warned of extra expenses when patients from outside the Valley must postpone surgery. A prolonged shortage could therefore disrupt treatment across multiple hospitals and patient groups.

Donating blood gives hospitals a supply that can be transfused to patients who need it for surgery, severe anemia, or other treatment. One donation can therefore help a relative stranger during a medical emergency. In the Valley, donations are especially important because hospitals need more than 400 pints each day.

The article explains that many people donated after the August 26 Bhotekoshi flood. They were not yet eligible to donate again because three months had not passed since their last donation. This waiting period limits how frequently the same person can contribute and protects donor safety.

That rule became significant during Dashain. Student donors had left the Valley, camps were suspended, and recent flood-response donors could not immediately return. Officials are seeking new eligible donors, including employees of banks and government offices and members of security agencies, to restore supplies.