Two situations drain a blood bank fastest: a major surgery scheduled for tomorrow, and an accident arriving right now. They stress the system differently, and donors matter in both. ## The scheduled surgery Planned operations with expected blood loss (cardiac, oncological, orthopaedic) get a group and screen first: the patient’s group is known, antibodies checked, units reserved. - If the bank has stock: the units are earmarked, donors may not be needed immediately.
- If the bank asks for replacement donation: the family arranges voluntary donors who give at the centre, crediting the patient’s account. This is standard in many Assam government hospitals, legal, voluntary and unpaid. Donors still pass every eligibility check; a patient’s surgery never bends the safety rules. ## The accident: minutes, not days A road-accident casualty with internal bleeding can need massive transfusion, red cells, plasma and platelets in 1:1:1-style ratios, repeated. Until crossmatching finishes, the default is O− red cells, the universal emergency group. - This is why banks hoard O− and why O− donors are precious.
- This is also why stock must exist before the ambulance arrives, shelves are made by regular donors, never by same-day appeals. ## For families at the hospital 1. Get the requisition slip; know the group and units.
- Post the request immediately, live in seconds, donors alerted nearby. Do the blood-bank counter in parallel.
- If replacement donors are asked for, send willing family to the centre, they will be screened like any donor, and they may be deferred, which is normal.
- Never pay a “broker”, paid arrangement is illegal and unsafe. ## For donors Accidents do not schedule themselves, which is exactly why registering beats intending to. The alert you answer on a Tuesday night is someone’s father who was on his way home. Related: find a blood donor fast · emergency playbook · journey of a blood bag