PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Wednesday directed the heath department to ensure the availability of blood for transfusion to a minor boy suffering from a rare disease till any final decision about his treatment.

A bench consisting of Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Mohammad Faheem Wali observed that the government should expedite work on the establishing modern hospitals in every province for the treatment of children suffering from thalassaemia and other blood-related diseases.

The bench regretted that there was no special hospital for children suffering from blood diseases in the province.

The bench was hearing a petition filed on behalf of six-year-old Mohammad Ali by his father seeking orders for the government to provide funds for the treatment of his child abroad.

Regrets province has no special hospital for children with blood problems

The petitioner claimed that the child’s treatment was not available in the country and he had no resources to take him abroad.

During a hearing, the bench had deputed special secretary of the health department Farooq Jamil as the focal person for the treatment of the boy and asked him to consult hematologists on the treatment available for the child.

It had also sought information about the proposal for setting up a hospital for bone marrow transplant and thalassaemia in the province.

Dr Farooq Jamil said the boy suffered from a rare blood disease requiring haploidentical transplant.

He said the bone marrow of the child matched only 50 per cent to that of his parents and experts said in his age, the transplant would threaten his life.

About the establishment of a special children hospital for bone marrow transplants, he said in 2014, the project of liver transplant centre in Khyber Medical University was started requiring Rs950 million funds.

He, however, said 64 per cent of the work on that project had been completed for which the federal government had provided Rs505 million.

Dr Farooq said the cost escalation had led to the revision of PC-I which was sent to the federal government, whose response was awaited.

He said the establishment of a bone marrow transplant centre along with the said liver transplant centre had been planned.

The bench directed a joint secretary of the finance division, who was also in attendance, to do the needful on the matter.

The joint secretary said the finance division had asked all provinces to submit their proposals for setting up such centres through their respective planning and development departments.

Moving scenes were witnessed in the courtroom when the child’s father said he was fast losing hope for the treatment.

The bench fixed March 30 for the next hearing asking the special secretary to help the petitioner get blood for the child’s transfusion.

Published in Dawn, February 17th, 2022