KARACHI, Oct 12: The Sindh Government Qatar Hospital, Orangi Town will be the first public sector health care facility in the province to have a platelet separator.

Sources in the provincial health department told APP on Friday that the machine costing Rs300,000 would be installed at the hospital soon after Eidul Fitr and the facility would be available to the masses free of charge.

The platelet separator which helps generation of mega units of platelets ie 100,000 to 150,000 units of platelets from a single donor is equally beneficial for patients inflicted with blood cancer or viral diseases. It is also capable of generating a minimum of eight to ten mega units of platelet a day.

According to Sindh Health Secretary Dr Abdul Majid, the health department will also procure three to four more platelet separators for its teaching hospitals in Larkana, Nawabshah, Hyderabad and Karachi.