KARACHI, Dec 22: The recent announcement by the Sindh Blood Transfusion Authority (SBTA) has brought no welcome reaction from experts who said rather than allowing mushrooming of blood banks, central blood transfusion services should be established and all other hospital blood banks should work under its frame work and focus only on arranging blood for admitted patients.

“The SBTA’s policy to register blood banks in wholesale is absurd. Instead of this it should find some ways to establish central transfusion services and Sindh needs at least five such networks with their headquarters in larger urban centers,” Dr Tahir Shamsi, a senior haematologist, told Dawn.

He called the registration of 26 more blood banks across the province anomalous and said it would again drew a cobweb of blood banks, which would be difficult to handle and make them better sources to provide blood donations to the needy.

“All over the world blood transfusion services are run by governments in collaboration with Red Cross and Red Crescent societies as a national service,” he said adding that the main function of these transfusion services is to collect blood from voluntary donors, screening them for hepatitis and Aids, re-calling these donors regularly for repeat donations, making blood components e.g. platelets, plasma and red cells.

“These transfusion services then distribute these screened blood components to all hospital blood banks as per their needs on daily basis. The function of hospital blood banks is only to arrange required blood components for the hospitalised patients on demand. These hospital blood banks do not collect blood or screen or make blood component,” he added.

Dr Shamsi said the STBA had started giving registration and permissions to blood banks of all sizes and magnitudes. According to him, the current practices of these registered blood banks, with few exceptions are that blood screening is not done, and if done, with cheapest kits and methods available.

“Many of them make a pool of four or more blood samples and test them collectively rather than individual testing. Those who test with standard ELISA technique, they also buy cheapest kits of dubious quality and origin. Many small blood banks do not screen blood samples at all. Almost 90 per cent of registered blood banks do not have any qualified specialist,” he said.