Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid has said that new measures are being introduced to ensure safe blood transfusion in the province and illegal or unregistered blood banks can not be allowed to operate.
She said this while inaugurating a new office of the Punjab Blood Transfusion Authority (PBTA) here on Friday. She appreciated the team of the PBTA especially its Secretary Dr Shahnaz Naseem for taking the organization to the right track.
She said the staff of public and private blood banks would be provided training of blood transfusion.
The minister informed that a complaint cell had been set up at the PBTA as well to resolve the public issues. She said that the administration of concerned teaching hospitals would be responsible for blood banks in their respective premises. “We are trying to promote private sector through support of the Punjab Health Foundation, ” she added.
She expressed her wish that private sector should come forward and set up modern blood banks in the province.
She said that all blood banks were now being monitored and unregistered blood banks would be closed down.
She disclosed the PBTA had inspected 1,097 blood banks and efforts were being made to register all blood banks in the next six months.
“Safe blood transfusion is integral to surgeries and no compromise can be made on this, ” the minister said. She urged the people not to take blood from anywhere except approved blood banks.
Later, responding to queries of journalists, the minister said that corruption would not be tolerated at any level and inquiries and investigations had been initiated against all allegations. She said Pathology labs were fully equipped in the teaching hospitals and their blood banks were working smoothly. She said that the corona vaccination campaign was being run successfully in the province.
Expressing her satisfaction on the steps to tackle the coronavirus, she said even the opposition had appreciated the efforts to control the pandemic. She lauded the Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department for vaccinating 500,000 people in one day.
The health minister said that Punjab had done round-the-clock vaccination at many centers and the NCOC had appreciated the Punjab for its successful efforts.
