Thalassemia Awareness Campaign launched

SEPLAA Foundation president appeals to health secretary and CM to make blood screening for Thalassemia mandatory.

LAHORE: “We appeal to the health secretary and the chief minister to make blood screening for Thalassemia mandatory before marriage and also include it in the Punjab Healthcare Bill,” said Ammara Farooq Malik, the SEPLAA Foundation president.

She was talking to the reporters at the Seplaa Centre while launching a Thalassemia Awareness Campaign on Wednesday that will last for two months.

Seplaa Foundation is a non-governmental organisation that provides quality education to underprivileged children and blood transfusion and bone marrow transplant facility in Pakistan.

Malik said that the government should ensure that the citizens are provided with a free-of charge blood screening facility for Thalassemia. She asserted that every person should be tested for Thalassemia at least once and the information be put on their identity cards along with their blood type.

Zahra Wyne, the Seplaa Foundation secretary general, explained that Thalassemia patients have to get blood transfusions at a regular basis. The campaign will involve awareness talks, competitions, a greeting cards campaign, blood donation and testing drives.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 17^th, 2011.