Kathmandu Metropolis provides 1,800 vials of anti-rabies vaccine to Sukraraj Hospital

The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) has supplied 1,800 vials of anti-rabies vaccine to Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital, responding to an urgent request due to a severe shortage. KMC officials confirmed they obtained the doses directly from suppliers and delivered them to the hospital, which had been struggling with a lack of vaccine for weeks.

Deepak Kumar KC, chief of the KMC Health Department, stated that the hospital administration had formally requested the vaccine, and the department acted upon learning of the shortage through media reports. The 1,800 vials contain approximately 3,600 doses, sufficient for about 3,600 individuals receiving a single dose or around 900 patients completing the standard four-dose course. This supply is anticipated to provide only short-term relief.

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The hospital administration had written to us requesting vaccine doses, and we also learnt about the shortage through media reports. So we have supplied 1,800 doses.

This intervention comes amid a nationwide shortage of rabies vaccine, with Teku hospital repeatedly appealing to various agencies. Health workers noted a high daily demand, with over 350 people vaccinated by noon on a recent Sunday, a number expected to exceed 600 by evening. Rabies is preventable with timely vaccination, but nearly always fatal once symptoms appear.

Officials from the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division are seeking additional doses from provincial agencies to maintain uninterrupted vaccination, as the procurement process for new supplies is lengthy. The World Health Organization has provided 4,500 doses, with additional contributions from KMC and provincial governments. However, the government's target is to procure about 300,000 doses for state-run facilities nationwide, a process that has been delayed in the current fiscal year, forcing many dog-bite victims to purchase vaccines privately or travel long distances.

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The vaccine procurement process has started, but the selection of suppliers has not been finalised. It takes additional time to complete the process and for the doses to arrive.