|
SA's blood 'a real bargain'
14/12/2004 00:14 - (SA)
Antoinette Pienaar, Beeld
Johannesburg - South African donor blood is one of the best bargains in the medical industry, says Professor Anthon Heyns, executive chief of the South African National Blood Service.
He was replying to insinuations that the service might be too profit-driven and blood might be expensive.
"We are registered under the Companies Act as a non-profit organisation.
"If I wanted to become rich, I would rather have been in the private pathology industry," he said.
His comments followed a remark by the health department's Dr Humphrey Zokufa that the government would be investigating the SANBS's finances for possible profit-mongering.
Heyns said the service's annual reports were public documents to which the health department had had access all along.
These indicated precisely to what use the money was put.
He said he found Zokufa's criticism strange as the department had a representative on the SANBS council.
R4 700 a unit in Canada
Heyns said the service was not subsidised by the government. He said that of the approximate R700 a unit of red-blood cells, R250 went to the establishment of clinics and R100 towards testing the blood for diseases and grouping.
A further R40 was used for processing, R110 for issuing, R20 for the quality-control system, which included accreditation, R30 for the management of its inventory and R150 for infrastructure.
A unit of blood costs $1 000 (about R4 700) in Canada and $600 (about R3 400) in the US without laboratory tests.
In the United Kingdom, a unit of blood will set you back £120 (about R1 300) without medical support, he said.
- Beeld
|
News
