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TheJournal Opinion 19/02/2001 The Journal
Opinion 19/02/2001
Blood scandal inquiry needed
WHEN 78 people die because of treatment they were given by the National Health Service, it is stretching credibility for the Department of Health to maintain a public inquiry will serve no-one’s interest.
Yet that is the situation we find ourselves in today because of blood products imported from America which were used to treat people suffering from haemophilia at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary.
The man in charge in the 1970s, Dr Peter Jones, is in no doubt where the blame lies.
The Government argument is that the blood product called Factor VIII was in great demand and also “greatly enhanced” the lives of many haemophiliacs.
To meet this demand, plasma was imported from the United States where it was common practice for blood to be sold by anyone who needed a few dollars.
Some firms even actively targeted prisons to get supplies.
The Governments defence that it knew nothing about this is shallow and evasive.
The fact of the matter is that warnings had been sounded and if the Department of Health was not aware of the dangers, it should have been.
The results are tragic.
Over 4,500 haemophiliacs in Britain contracted hepatitis C and 1,200 became infected with HIV.
Dr Jones has seen 78 of his patients die, and, still, there is no sign of the Government launching an inquiry into this affair.
Today, he is in the Republic of Ireland giving evidence at an inquiry into exactly this issue.
Is it really too much to ask that victims and the families of victims in this country be afforded the same opportunity?
A bump and a drip!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
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