HYDERABAD, Oct 8: Authorities of the health department on Saturday sealed several blood banks and laboratories for selling unscreened blood to patients. The Blood Screening Committee conducted raids on different blood banks and laboratories under instructions from the Sindh governor.
A spokesman for the director-general of the Sindh health services in a statement said the chairman of the committee, Dr Hadi Bux Jatoi accompanied by EDO health Dr Nazar Mohammad Junejo, Dr Hameed Shaikh, focal person Dr Shafi Mohammad Raho and Dr Roshan Bhatti raided many blood banks and laboratories in Hyderabad.
The committee sealed Waleed Blood Bank, Hamid Laboratory and Blood Bank and Seena Laboratory and Blood Bank.
It was found that the quality of the blood was substandard, storage arrangements of blood were inadequate and the staff inexperienced.
Dr Jatoi said the Sindh governor had taken a serious notice of the sale of substandard blood and issued an ordinance for taking strict action against perpetrators of the crime.
He warned that the committee would seal all such laboratories where there were no screening arrangements and substandard blood was being purchased and sold.
He said in Hyderabad alone 136 blood banks had been given notice to get blood banks registered but so far only 36 have complied with the instructions.
NAWABSHAH: A special team of the health department along with the EDO health conducted raids on different blood banks and sealed two blood banks for selling unscreened blood.
The team headed by Deputy Secretary Dr Naseer Kolachi, EDO health Dr Ali Nawaz Khoso, Dr Bahadur Khero, Dr Ghulam Murtaza Rajpar and Dr Muzaffar Jafri sealed the National Blood Bank on the Sakrand road and Shahbaz Blood Bank at the Edhi chowk for violating safe blood act.
The officials issued warning to the Arfi Laboratory and others blood banks.
Dr Kolachi said the raids were conducted as a part of special campaign.
He said the two blood banks sealed were not having blood screening, standard blood bank refrigerators, centrifuge machines, haemoglobin metre and donor register, screening register and annual record.
They said warnings had been issued to other laboratories and blood banks and cases would be registered against owners of the sealed blood banks.
LARKANA: A four-member team of the Sindh health department headed by Additional Health Secretary Iqbal Bablani here on Saturday sealed four unregistered blood banks for running their business in the city.
Other members of the team are: EDO health Dr Noor Ahmed Khoso, the focal person of the Sindh Blood Transfusion Authority, Dr Farooq Soomro, and SBTA member Dr Dileep.
Dr Soomro told Dawn that Al-Murtaza blood bank, Sachal Bughio blood bank, Sukkur Blood Bank operating inside the Z.A. Bhutto laboratory and Ali Abbas Blood Bank were sealed after they were found involved in illegal business of blood in violation of SBTA rules.
“Neither they had employed any pathologist nor were undertaking blood groupings, sampling and donations in line with the settled rules and regulations of the SBTA”, he said.
The team recommended to the DPO for registering FIRs against owners of sealed blood banks.
The team during the visit traced that certain laboratories attached with private medical centres were lacking required kits and other mandatory things for running a blood bank.
Such laboratories functioning inside the Almas Medical Center, Sindh Medical Center, Mehran Medical Center, Abbasi Medical Center, Sachal laboratory and Marvi laboratory were warned to desist from indulging in illegal blood trade.
The raids came in the wake of Sindh governor’s orders to close all such laboratories which were supplying unscreened blood to patients.
The blood samples collected from different laboratories were sent to the laboratory of the Chandka Medical College Hospital for further reports.
Under new laws, the focal person said the EDO health had been authorized to recommend such cases for registering FIRs against owners of blood banks if they found involved running blood banks in violation of the SBTA rules and regulations.