The impact of COVID-19 on blood transfusion services at Colonial War Memorial Hospital, Suva, Fiji.

The aim of this study was to find the impact of COVID-19 on transfusion services at Colonial War Memorial Hospital, Suva. The objectives were to identify trends in blood donation and its management before and during the pandemic, and to look at strategies for recruiting donors during the pandemic. The data collected demonstrated an 8.8% (n=690) decline in donations between the years 2019 to 2020 with a 4.69% (n=336) decline in donations between 2020 to 2021. The findings suggest that the major cause of the decline was due to COVID-19 lockdowns and movement restrictions. Demographics e.g. age of donors were also evaluated to find blood donor deferral and age of donors with the findings showing the age category of 16-45y to be common for deferrals as well as for donation. A strategic approach needs to be formulated for scenarios like the COVID-19 pandemic to implement working policies.