A day care unit to treat patients suffering from sickle cell anaemia will open in the Bahrain’s main hospital next month.

It aims to reduce waiting lines at the accident and emergency department of Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC) and prevent patients from being admitted overnight, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

Details of the unit, which will be operational on July 5, were announced yesterday by Health Ministry Under-Secretary for Hospital Affairs Dr Waleed Al Manea at a Press conference held at the ministry's Juffair office.

Establishing the unit was part of recommendations made by a team of experts from US-based Johns Hopkins Hospital Sickle Cell Infusion Centre for Adults.

The four-member team visited the Hereditary Blood Disorder Centre, located at the SMC, in January, where they interviewed patients, medical staff and volunteers and subsequently submitted a set of 10 recommendations on how Bahrain can improve care for patients with sickle cell anaemia.

"The unit is one among the 10 major recommendations of the John Hopkins team and the ministry has an action plan to back up these recommendations," said Dr Al Manea.

"The aim of the unit is to help the patients get quick and exclusive attention and at the same time stop them from having to stay overnight in the hospital.

"Usually such patients are administered antibiotics or analgesics, which is for the duration of almost eight hours and once these units are functional, they can leave the hospital after that stipulated time, saving them from getting admitted.

"This also helps them from not having to wait at the accident and emergency department."

A soft opening will be held on June 30 and work was in progress under the guidance of an assigned team, he added.

Meanwhile, a multi-disciplinary supervisory team, comprising members of primary health care centres, has been created to deliver high quality care for sickle cell patients, said Dr Al Manea.

A plan will also be developed to assess the degree of pain suffered by patients and medical staff will be trained on pain management.

The GDN earlier reported that hydroxyurea - a chemotherapy drug that breaks down cells prone to sickle - was now available in primary health centres.

It was previously only administered at SMC.

"In the case of patients who find hydroxyurea ineffective, more blood transfusion schedules will be permitted," added Dr Al Manea.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Press conference, SMC diagnostic affairs deputy chief Dr Raja Al Yusuf said there were currently 100 sickle cell anaemia patients at the hospital, of which nearly 65 were male.

Visits

SMC genetic blood diseases consultant Dr Jaffar Al Tooq said 300 sickle cell patients visited the primary health care centres daily, while 400 visiting the specialty centre.

According to the experts, 5,000 sickle cell anaemia patients are registered with the Health Ministry, but not all report for treatments.

The hereditary blood disorder is characterised by abnormal blood cells that have a tendency to take on a rigid, sickle-like shape and sufferers are prone to a number of acute and chronic health problems such as infection, attacks of severe pain known as "sickle-cell crisis" and stroke.

Six Bahrainis have died so far this year from complications related to the disease, while 46 deaths were recorded last year.

This compares with 32 deaths in 2013, 47 in 2012, 32 in 2011, 35 in 2010, and 25 in 2009. - TradeArabia News Service