28 thalassaemia centres to be set up in Sindh: health minister

Karachi
The Sindh government will establish 28 thalasaemia centres across the province where blood will be provided by the Sindh Blood Transfusion Authority, provincial health minister Jam Mehtab Dahar promised on Friday.
He said the government was working to eliminate the dreaded disease of thalassaemia from Sindh and in this regard it was going set up treatment centres for the children who suffered from this genetic blood disorder.
Speaking at the inauguration of three-day 10th National Thalassaemia Conference at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), the health minister said thalassaemia will be eradicated from the province since the government will ensure the implementation of the Sindh Prevention and Control of Thalassaemia Act 2013 in letter and spirit to prevent future generations from a life of pain and suffering.
He said under the law, every couple had to get screened for thalassaemia before marriage.
Other participants at the three-day international conference, organised by the Thalassaemia Foundation Pakistan’s Sindh chapter, included haematologists, health practitioners, representatives of thalassaemia centres and relevant non-governmental organisations.
Prior to the conference, the Thalassaemia Federation Pakistan’s (TFP) executive council held an important meeting and shared their recommendations regarding to the prevention and cure of the disease.
In addition to national and international experts, a large number of the thalassaemia-affected children and their parents are also participating in the conference to share their experiences to gain and spread awareness on the various aspects of disease management.
The president of TFP, Lieutenant General (Retd) Moinuddin Haider, said collective efforts by the government and private sector were required to eliminate the disease. He praised the efforts being undertaken in Sindh and said during the last decade, the federation had become affiliated with 40 institutions.
He called for strict implementation of the thalassaemia act passed by the provincial assembly a couple of years back.
Other speakers included renowned columnist Munno Bhai, Dr Sarfaraz Jaffery, Dr Zahid Ansari, Dr Hassan Abbas Zahir, Dr Hussain Jaffery, Prof Javeria Mannan, Obaid Hashmi and Prof Anis Bhatti highlighted the misery of children who suffered from the genetic blood disorder.
They said couples getting married should get screened for thalassaemia, it should be mentioned in the marriage certificate if they carried major or minor genes. The three-day conference ends on Sunday.