Blood collections to be videotaped

CHINA / National

Blood collections to be videotaped

By Shan Juan (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-07-11 06:51

The Ministry of Health has ordered all blood plasma collection centers
across the country to videotape plasma collections in a bid to stamp out
the illegal blood trade.

This underground industry was at the center of a massive HIV outbreak in
Henan Province in the mid-1990s.

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The surveillance system is scheduled to be in place by the end of
October. Every plasma collection is to be videotaped to help guard
against illegal transactions and other forms of malpractice.

Such lapses are closely related to the fake plasma-based product scandals
that have surfaced in recent times, MOH spokesman Mao Qun'an said at a
regular news briefing yesterday

In one case, 2,000 bottles of fake blood protein were discovered in Jilin
Province, according to the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA),
China's drug watchdog.

The fakes could have been deadly, particularly if a patient were allergic
to the materials used, medical experts warned.

There are currently 33 companies producing plasma-based products in
China, according to Xinhua News Agency.

Last year, these companies were commissioned by the MOH and SFDA to set
up and operate plasma collection stations, which were previously under
the charge of medical authorities.

Because these companies collect plasma to make products for profit, they
tend to compensate donors.

Industry insiders worry this arrangement could hurt the quality of such
products as companies could be tempted to resort to illegal collections
in order to increase their profits in an otherwise competitive industry.

Some collect or provide plasma without testing it properly, and some
accept plasma from donors using assumed identities. Some have accepted
blood from a single donor more than once in a six-month period, contrary
to the time restrictions laid out in the country's blood collection law,
said Mao.

Plasma collection stations in Shanxi and Henan provinces were shut down
for engaging in such practices, Mao said.

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