The Director-General of Blood Banks and Laboratories, and Chairman of Laboratories and Blood Banks Technical Supervisory Committee at the Ministry of Health (MOH), Dr. Ali bin Sa'd Al-Shammari, said that the MOH has established a molecular screening unit for infectious diseases at the laboratory of Mina Al-Wadi Hospital for the first time to screen the infectious viruses and Coronavirus.
Meanwhile, Dr. Al-Shammari stressed that medical laboratories and blood banks have started providing services for pilgrims so early in the Hajj season of this year (1434H) in accordance with the work plan prepared after the end of the Hajj work plan of the previous year (1433H).
In the same vein, Dr. Al-Shammari stressed that all laboratories in the Holy Sites' hospitals are equipped with the latest laboratory equipments; adding that such equipments were checked and preventively maintained. Besides, all the needed solutions were provided for laboratories and blood banks.
Dr. Al-Shammari further noted that the workforces, including the specialists and physicians, were already distributed to hospitals, pointing out that all Holy Sites' laboratories are subject to the Quality Program; to ensure the quality of their results.
Speaking of workforces, Dr. Al-Shammari confirmed that all the workforces were distributed to the laboratories in Makkah and Holy Sites' hospitals, each according to his location, highlighting that the total number of employees has reached 610 employees, including 502 Saudi employees. There are also 480 males, and 130 females.
In addition, Dr. Al-Shammari added that the necessary blood units were provided for the blood banks, and donation campaigns were launched within the hospitals of the Holy Sites and through the mobile vehicles to receive blood donors.