Centralized Blood Banking System is being started:Kh Salman Rafiq

Lahore: Kh Salman Rafiq has said that centralized Blood Banking System is being started for ensuring provision of healthy  and safe blood and its contents to the people of Punjab so that the diseases spread through  blood transfusion could be eradicated. He said this while presiding over a meeting of the committee constituted by Chief Minister Punjab for reviewing the progress of making RBCs operational completed at Multan and Bahawalpur and setting up regional blood banks.

Secretary Specialized Healthcare & Medical Education Najam Ahmed Shah, Member Health P&D Dr. Shabana Haider, Additional Secretary (Technical)   Dr. Salman Shahid, Dr. Asif Joya of Shaukat Khanum Hospital, Additional Secretary Finance  Dr. Noor-ul-Ain Fatima, Prof. Saba Jamal from Indus Hospital Karachi, Member Punjab Assembly Dr. Aalia Aftab, Director Institute of Blood Transfusion Service Dr. Zafar Iqbal, Prof. Noman Malik of PGMI and other officers attended the meeting.

Representatives of IBTS and Indus Hospital Karachi gave separate briefing to the meeting. Dr. Saba Jamal appreciated the initiatives of Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif for providing healthy and safe blood and said that Punjab province is taking lead in public sector in providing healthy blood and it is marching towards Paradigm shifting with regard to blood banking.

The meeting was told that two German institutions GIZ and KFW have constructed two regional blood centers at Multan and Bahawalpur whereas there is a plan of constructing such RBCs in other divisions. The meeting discussed to run the blood centers of Multan and Bahawalpur by Indus Hospital Karachi and the committee will submit its final recommendations to the Chief Minister within a day or two.

Kh. Salman Rafiq said that Indus Hospital Trust Karachi is already operating Tayyip Erdogan Hospital Muzaffargarh and Lidher Hospital Bedian Road Lahore in an efficient manner. Secretary Health Najam Ahmed Shah said that after final decision, a formal agreement will be signed with Indus Hospital in this regard and all terms and conditions of the contract will be decided. He also issued necessary instructions for preparing contractual document in this regard.