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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider PH Red Cross to repurpose molecular lab equipment to strengthen blood facilities

PH Red Cross to repurpose molecular lab equipment to strengthen blood facilities

Published Jul 11, 2023 10:21 am
The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) will repurpose the equipment of 14 molecular laboratories to strengthen the blood facilities across the country.   (Philippine Red Cross / Manila Bulletin)

In a statement on Tuesday, July 11, PRC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Richard Gordon said the molecular laboratories equipment and trucks which were set up in response to the Covid-19 pandemic will be relocated to the PRC's 107 blood service locations countrywide to improve blood collection and distribution.  PRC Secretary General Dr. Gwen Pang added that these molecular laboratories provided Filipinos with affordable Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) swab and saliva testing between April 2020 and June 2023, a total of approximately 5.7 million swab and saliva tests. Because of the increasing number of Covid-19 cases, Gordon stressed the need to optimize molecular laboratory equipment to meet blood demand. "The Department of Health recorded over 60,000 dengue cases between January and June this year, which is 17 percent higher than last year," Gordon said. "This is alarming, and given that children and infants are particularly vulnerable to this infection, the demand for blood, especially platelets, is of utmost importance," he added. In April 2020, PRC opened its first molecular laboratory and made an automated RT-PCR test available to the public. The molecular laboratories were previously located in Metro Manila, Subic, Clark, Batangas, Cebu, Negros Occidental, Zamboanga, Cagayan de Oro, Isabela, Surigao del Norte, Iloilo, and Cotabato. 

*(Rhowen Del Rosario)

*

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Philippine Red Cross ( PRC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Senator Richard J. Gordon
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