Background/Case Studies: Experience with previous disasters shapes preparedness and, in turn, improves the effectiveness of blood disaster management, particularly in countries like Lebanon that are prone to humanitarian crisis and disasters due to its increased political instabilities and constant turmoil's. The purpose is to highlight the past and current responses of blood services in Lebanon, provided by the government and the Lebanese Red Cross (LRC), and to share the experiences and the lessons learned.
Study
Design/Methods: Benchmarking analysis of the data collected from the LRC and the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health (MOPH)
Results/Findings: Lebanon has implemented emergency measures and maintains an overall acceptable, though varied, approach to managing blood supply during disasters. The wide range of situations faced, which placed multiple strains on the blood supply and management systems requires a clear understanding of their impact on blood transfusion needs and response plans:2006 war, 2011 massive influx of Syrian refugees, 2019 revolution and riots/blockades, 2019 financial crisis, 2020 Beirut explosion, and recently, 2024 pager's explosion and full-scale war. The LRC has long been instrumental in maintaining the national blood supply, thanks to its mitigation and preparedness plans, along with disaster activation procedures. In October 2023, the MOPH established the public health emergency operation center (PHEOC) with the aim of centralizing emergency management and response efforts.To ensure a reliable blood supply during times of conflict, the PHEOC delegated this responsibility to the LRC .The lessons learned from these experiences laid the foundation for the recently employed effective response plans. In the pager explosion, a total of 373 packed red blood cells were distributed over the course of 3 days. Furthermore, in the case of the full-scale war, 3168 blood units were collected and 2418 blood components were distributed to 252 hospitals across the country. Conclusions: Each country faces unique challenges, which means that the plan to ensure the availability and sustainability of safe blood components during humanitarian emergencies must be customized to each blood system. By analyzing past, present and potential future disasters, a country can better determine the necessary steps to develop or improve its blood supply contingency and emergency plans.
