KARACHI, Dec 31: A policy is being formulated under which the medico-legal officers (MLOs) will undergo training in forensic medicine after which they will be posted in various hospitals, including some privately-run ones.

This was stated by Faisal Malik, the adviser on health to the chief minister, at a press briefing on Friday. He said under the new policy, the MLOs would be transferred from one hospital to the other several times in a few years.

"It has been observed that some MLOs have created monopolies in a few hospitals where they have been posted for the last 15 to 20 years," said Mr Malik. "The new policy will do away with these monopolies."

The health authorities were ready to allow some private hospitals to open medico-legal sections, said the adviser. "The new policy will have a big portion which will deal with this issue.

"So, after the policy is implemented, the people who want the private hospital staff to perform autopsies on the bodies of their relatives would have this option." He criticized the sitting MLOs and said many of them do not perform autopsies and other investigations themselves. They rely on ward boys and even sweepers who perform these procedures.

Mr Malik said the Sindh Blood Transfusion Authority (SBTA) plans a province-wide crackdown on unregistered blood banks, which often deal in substandard products. He informed the journalists that 146 blood banks are operating in Sindh.

"Of this number, 46 units are government-controlled. Eight of these blood banks have been registered by the SBTA, while one has been asked to improve its standard. "Similarly, 113 blood banks are being run in the private sector, of which 20 have been approved for registration. Notices have been issued to 88 blood banks."

He said the governor had asked the department to give more teeth to the Safe Blood Act of 1999. "A summary has been moved on his directives under which the people dealing in unsafe blood products would be liable to a maximum imprisonment of three years, as against two years as originally mentioned in the Act."

The summary, which had already been sent to the law department, held that every doctor who prescribed products from unregistered blood banks would also be punished, said Mr Malik. The names of the registered blood banks would be displayed prominently in every hospital.

The health adviser announced that a seven-storey trauma centre was being planned, work on which had been started by the medical superintendent of the Civil Hospital Karachi. The centre would come under the administrative control of the CHK and would be situated on the Chand Bibi Road.

Mr Malik said due to faulty planning, the government-run hospitals face shortage of medicines off-and-on. "To resolve this problem, all hospitals should inform the I.I. Depot of their requirements in May or June every year so that tenders may be floated by July.

"But it so happens that the hospitals do not send their requirements until July every year with the result that tenders are not floated before August. Consequently, the drugs are actually supplied by November or December."

Answering a question, he said the chief minister had instructed the health department to change the police surgeon. Asked why did he allow the chief minister to interfere in his work, Mr Malik said the CM belonged to a party which was in a coalition with his party - the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

"Because we are in the same coalition, we listen to whatever he says. And mind you, the CM has never sought to interfere in our work. But he does convey to us his wishes, which is often in accordance to what his constituency wants."

In response to a question, the health adviser said international donor agencies, like the WHO and Unicef, often deal directly with the directors of developmental projects.

"This is one reason why these project directors are largely not answerable to us. These people are not accountable to the masses too." Turning to the issue of polio eradication, he said: "The disease is yet to be controlled because we in Sindh have a lot of migrations, both from abroad and within the country."