Health reforms: Multan gets new Regional Blood Centre with German grant

Centre has capacity to store 50,000 blood bags

MULTAN: Punjab government, in collaboration with Germany, has established a Regional Blood Centre equipped with latest facilities in Multan.

Provincial Minister for Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Khawaja Salman Rafique and German Envoy Ina Lepel inaugurated the centre on Wednesday. The centre has a capacity to store 50,000 blood bags.

The Multan and Bahawalpur Blood Centres are among the 10 Regional Blood Centres developed with the German government grant of Rs2 billion. The move is part of Safe Blood Transfusion Project which aimed to establish a nationwide network of 10 modern blood centres and up-gradation of 59 existing hospital-based blood banks all over the country.

During the second phase, a new centre will be established in Faisalabad while blood banks in Mayo and Jinnah Hospitals will be upgraded.

While speaking on the occasion, the health minister appreciated the support of the Germen government and appealed the people, especially youth to donate blood voluntarily to the Regional Blood Centres in Multan and Bahawalpur.

On the occasion, the German ambassador congratulated the health minister for taking keen interest in the implementation of the project. She expressed hope that these centres will herald a new era of blood safety for the people of South Punjab.

She maintained, “In the second phase, the entire focus will be on Central Punjab.” Lepel termed the Safe Blood Transfusion Project a success.

Meanwhile, Project Coordinator Prof Zaheer said the Regional Blood Centres serve as blood procurement and distribution centres. They are tasked to ensure quality systems to regulate all activities which involve mobilisation and retention of voluntary and regular blood donors, maintenance of donor database and collection of blood donations.

He added, “A customised Management Information System has been especially procured for smooth functioning of the new system.”

He maintained, “The blood components prepared in these centres will be provided to blood banks of eleven hospitals that are linked with it.”

“These eleven existing hospital blood banks have been provided new equipment to perform the function of storage, distribution, compatibility testing and haemovigilance.

Other private and NGO sector hospitals of the region will also be provided blood components by these centres,” he informed the participants.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 16^th, 2017.