Secretary Health directs to accelerate the process of registration of blood banks

Lahore: Secretary Health Punjab Jawad Rafique Malik has directed the concerned authorities to accelerate the process of registration of blood banks to ensure provision of healthy and screened blood to the patients. He further directed that campaign should be launched against the sub-standard and such blood banks who did not apply for registration to the Punjab Blood Transfusion Authority (BTA) and it would be started from Lahore.

He said this while presiding over a meeting to review the arrangements/measures to launch campaign against sub-standard blood banks at the office of BTA at Birdwood Road.

Besides, DCO Lahore Capt. (R) Muhammad Usman, Additional Secretary Health (Tech) Dr. Salman Shahid, German Consultant (GIZ) for Blood Transfusion Paul Kohorrt, Secretary BTA Dr. Jaffar Saleem, Dr. Javeria, Legal Officer of Health Department and police officials attended the meeting.

German Consultant Paul Kohorrt said that there is a need to remove the misunderstandings and wrong myths regarding the blood donation for which an awareness campaign should be launched among the masses. He said that the most reliable blood donor is a volunteer blood donor. Mr. Paul further said that every healthy person can easily donate blood four times in a year. He stressed the need of an effective Management Information System (MIS) for monitoring the blood banks and training of the staff.

Secretary Health directed that services of hematologists from the medical colleges to be hired immediately for the checking of blood banks. He directed that at least one hematologist should be nominated as blood inspector in each town of Lahore and drug inspectors should assist them in their duties. He directed that during the checking of blood banks, police officials should also accompany the checking party for security purpose. He asked DCO Lahore to issue directions to the officers of district government for extending full cooperation to the health department in launching campaign against sub-standard blood banks.

It was decided that one day training workshop for the blood inspectors and drug inspectors would be arranged by Blood Transfusion Authority on 30^th December 2014 for which German Consultant would provide training module. A check list would be provided to the inspection team for the inspection of standard/quality and facilities available in the blood banks.