Daily Times

LAHORE: World Blood Donor Day was observed on Tuesday all over the world to highlight the importance of access to safe blood transfusion, but the Punjab government seems to be indifferent to the patients, as it has failed to register blood banks for ensuring availability of healthy blood to patients and safe transfusion.

The Punjab government virtually shelved a bid to enhance fine and imprisonment for those who are running substandard blood banks in the province. The amended ‘Punjab Blood Transfusion Safety Act’ is yet to be tabled before the provincial assembly for approval despite the government’s commitment made in last few months.

According to an official of Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Department (SHC&ME), Punjab faces great threat of Hepatitis C and HIV and data collected by the department stated that more than 2,500 blood banks were operating all over the province without registration and proper infrastructure. He said the Health Department has failed to regulate these illegal blood banks and provision of safe blood transfusion to patients in the province.

The Punjab Blood Transfusion Authority (PBTA) was established in 2006 under Punjab Safe Blood Transfusion Ordinance 1999, to regulate blood transfusion services in both private and public sector hospitals. The authority remained non-functional for many years till 2014 when it was re-notified under the chairmanship of Advisor to Chief Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique, with an aim to check illegal blood banks and business of substandard and unscreened blood besides monitoring of all private and public blood banks to ensure that these banks are managed and run by qualified professionals. However, the authority remained dysfunctional.

The official said despite repeated promises of the government that no unregistered blood bank could operate in the province and criminal proceedings would be initiated against the owner under the law, the masses of Punjab are still to witness any positive changes.

He also deplored the mushroom growth of illegal and unsafe blood banks due to lack of regulation for the blood transfusion sector in Punjab. One of the main sources of transmission of Hepatitis (B&C), HIV, syphilis, and malaria is transfusion of unsafe blood, he added.

He further said many of these banks rely on professional donors, which have high rate of transfusion transmissible infection in our population. Other problems facing the blood transfusion sector of Punjab include a lack of trained human resource to conduct proper function of blood banks. The capacity of blood transfusion services to conduct these trainings needs to be increased urgently. This includes the provision of the necessary human and financial resources.

Another important issue in Punjab is lack of authority to license the reagents and supplies of blood banks. He said under the existing Punjab Transfusion Of Safe Blood Ordinance 1999, the maximum fine was only Rs 15,000 and maximum punishment was three years for running a substandard blood bank.

He said a high level committee was constituted to prepare the draft act, adding that the committee held a number of consultative meetings and got approved the draft from the chief minister. It was proposed that in order to address deficiencies, there was a need to formulate the act through which safe blood transfusion services could be provided to the community. Under the proposed amended draft, the fine and punishment had been enhanced to Rs one million while imprisonment could extend to 14 years. However, the government is yet to present the amended laws in the provincial assembly for approval.