KARACHI, Jan 8: The Patients’ Welfare Association at the Civil Hospital Karachi will upgrade its blood screening facility.

This was stated by senior volunteers at the PWA’s 33rd annual general body of on Tuesday. The meeting was attended by health professionals and pharmaceutical industrialists, including Prof Dr Abdul Bari, Khalilur Rehman, S. Khalid Tawab and Siddiq Shaikh.

In her remarks, PWA president Hiba Khan said the association provided a rare platform to Dow Medical College students to undertake charitable work through a variety of philanthropic endeavours. “The minds and hearts of students are full of belief and goodwill towards others, including the patients admitted to the CHK,” she said.

A senior coordinator, Attera Haq, briefed the audience on the upgrade of the screening facility at the PWA’s blood bank, which collected about 80,000 bags of blood last year.The blood transfusion services were established in 1982 in an effort to discourage professional blood donors, who included drug addicts and carriers of transmittable diseases, and provide safe, healthy and screened blood, Ms Haq said. She added that the PWA planned to modify the screening system and introduce the chemoluminescence immuno assay (CLIA) technology, replacing the existing enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay technology, in line with the international standards.

However, she said the change of technology would cost around Rs30 million, including the cost of machine and annual recurring screening cost of Rs20 million, and thus the PWA required more generous contributions from philanthropists.

Treasurer Abdul Nafey Kazi said the PWA was trying to provide quality services to poor patients of the CHK free. During 2011-12 it spent about Rs60m, while the addition of CLIA technology would increase the budget estimates to Rs80m in the coming years.

“The CLIA is our choice because it is more sensitive and more specific test and helped pick up infections efficiently,” Mr Kazi said, adding that the process for the proposed technology upgrade would begin this year.

It was also highlighted at the meeting that being a non-governmental and non-political wellfare organisation, the PWA had provided free medical services to destitute patients of the CHK through its blood bank with an annual output of 90,000 bags, TB and general follow-up clinics with over 300 registered patients, thalassaemia services with 276 registered patients, a pharmacy catering to requests of numerous patients.

Volunteers Haris Shaikh and Huda Naim also spoke at the general body meeting. The guests praised PWA efforts.