The Hindu : Chinks in blood bank licensing system

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 22, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Vijayawada

Chinks in blood bank licensing system

By Our Staff Reporter

VIJAYAWADA, FEB. 21. The Krishna district administration has written a letter to the State Drug Control Authority not to renew the licence of a blood bank in the city. The letter sent in response to a complaint has kicked up a row bringing to light chinks in the blood bank licensing system. One of the startling facts is that only one blood bank in the city has a proper licence as of now. The law itself allows blood banks to function without a licence indefinitely. The Drug Control Act allows a licensee to continue functioning until the Government cancels its order or rejects the plea to renew it even after the expiry of the licence.

The district Collector, K. Prabhakar Reddy, told newspersons here on Saturday that he had received a complaint that a patient contracted HIV reportedly due to transfusion of blood purchased from a blood bank, which was awaiting renewal of licence. Investigations showed that the blood bank was not screening samples for AIDS, Mr. Reddy said. However, officials of the Drug Control Department differ with this view. But, the Collector and the Drug Inspector of Vijayawada agreed with each other on the issue that the patient contracted HIV only after blood transfusion and both officials have recommended to the Government not to renew the licence of the blood bank. The Drug Control authorities are, however, saying that screening tests are being conducted on all voluntary donors. After the Government had banned blood banks from conducting blood donation camps, there is a marked change in the way blood samples are screened for AIDS. The blood banks, for want of time, are conducting the Elisa rapid spot test with the help of a tailor-made kit in which the result has to be recorded manually. In fact, the blood samples used to be screened with the aid of an Elisa Reader which takes a longer time to give results. The drug inspectors are monitoring records of rapid spot kits being used by different blood banks to ensure that all the samples are being screened. The number of screening kits being purchased by the blood bank "are found to be adequate'' vis-a-vis the number of screening tests conducted, as per the observations of the drug inspectors. However, an inquiry conducted by the Drug Inspector of Vijayawada, Raja Bhanu, into the circumstances that led to the death of Ashok Babu, revealed that the blood bank "sold blood that was collected from an unauthorised person (not a voluntary donor)''. The patient, who had tested positive for AIDS, subsequently succumbed to his ailments. On the basis of the finding, the Drug Control authorities recommended that the blood bank be rejected the licence.

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