Azra Fazal Pechuho chairs meeting with Secretary Health, VC DOW

KARACHI: Azra Fazal Pechuho, Minister for Health and Population Welfare, Sindh, held a meeting with Zulfiqar Shah, Secretary Health, Dr Saeed Quraishy, VC DOW University, Dr Rahim Bux Bhatti, Director, GIMS. 

The Development and Works and Services department representatives were also in attendance. 

The meeting was informed of the progress of DOW University experts who had completed trial batches and had approached DRAP for the NOC. All four types of anti-snake venom samples will be submitted to an international authority to certify it is safe for human use. 

The products have been manufactured according to the methodology and guidelines that WHO has provided, and there is a list of quality control measures that have been applied from the laboratory to the manufacturing and veterinary conditions (that include milking the snake and extracting plasma from horses.) 

Consultants from WHO has surveyed the process and conditions of this manufacturing and DOW are asked to share their expertise and training on anti-snake venom production with GIMS.   

This exchange will allow Sindh to safely and sustainably manufacture anti-snake venom locally, enabling a more reliable and speedy resource.