The family that first raised the alarm of possible blood contamination at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) blood bank has said the probe that cleared the hospital of claims that it gave out blood with HIV and Syphilis was not transparent.
In a statement following the pronouncement by the five-member Independent Committee set up by the Ministry of Health on the matter, Evans Addo Kwabla, the son of the woman who was almost given the blood feared to be contaminated, said “there was no transparency in the handling of the blood.”
[contextly_sidebar id=”Aon8rTDwsxKWZ88x9rzy4BsJqn95gjtT”]He also said they were “not part of the team who took the blood to Accra and were not involved in any investigation.”
“The only instance was a time when he was invited by police with no agenda even upon several requests of what exactly the meeting was about on Thursday (6th December) and only to find out at police quarters that he was to meet a committee from Accra,” the statement noted.
Mr. Kwabla thus said “we do not associate with the results brought out by the committee.”
He said there would be a further press conference on the matter.
Officials at the Kean Health Medical and Diagnostic Spa, the facility that tested blood samples from the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital believed to be contaminated, came out to say they did not conduct a confirmatory test.
The Medical Director at the Private facility, Dr. Kwodwo Eyeson, told Citi News the hospital only carried out a screening test which cannot be used as the final results.
Background
Reports first emerged on social media suggesting that the blood had been issued to a patient of a private clinic.
Two different blood bags from the hospital were said to have tested positive for HIV and Syphilis, according to Adolf Addo Kwabla.
He told Citi News that his mother had been sick for some months, and the family had sought treatment at a private facility in Kumasi called the Kean Health Center.
Without going into details, Adolf Addo said ahead of one of his mother’s appointments at the health centre, she was asked to bring along some blood.
When the blood was brought along on the day of the appointment, “they took the blood and said they were doing tests. We sat waiting and later a lady came and told us the blood we had was contaminated; both of them. One had HIV and other had Syphilis,” Adolf Addo recounted.
KATH, in a statement following the claims, said it has “a track record of stringent blood testing protocols and maintains the highest standards for blood safety.”
Find below the full statement
PRESS RELEASE
A CALL FOR FAIR TREATMENT ON ALLEGED KATH CONTAMINATED BLOOD SAGA
The family of the patient at the Centre of the contaminated blood brouhaha would like to establish the following:
1. There was no transparency in the handling of the blood
a. complainant was denied access to join the team that took the blood away to military hospital.
b. complainant was not part of the team who took the blood to Accra and was not involved in any investigation. The only instance was a time when he was invited by police with no agenda even upon several request of what exactly the meeting was about on the Thursday (6th December) and only to find out at police quarters that he was to meet a committee from Accra. To this effect, meeting with committee was inconclusive.
2. Preliminary test that Kath claim proved negative was test done at same Kath lab.
3. We do not associate with the results brought out by the committee. (our opinion)
4. KATH has delayed in providing medical report of our patient upon legally requesting for it a month ago.
5.Kean refused to take care of patient and all institutions involved (KATH, committee, CID etc) have neglected our patient to her fate.
6.There is an interesting untold story about this blood issue we are yet to unravel through a press conference.
Signed
Evans Addo Kwabla
(Son of Patient)
for Enquiries: 0208066060
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By: Delali Adogla-Ghana | citinewsroom.com | Ghana
