Sir, I am shocked and horrified by the complacent attitude of the Board of the Blood Transfusion Service in identifying the 15 victims of HIV contaminated blood. To think that an enquiry was only sent out last September to 45 hospitals, and we now have only 15 replies! In my opinion, a red alert should have been sent to these hospitals so that by now we would have identified all the victims.
Have these people forgotten we are dealing with human lives life that is so precious and that no money can buy? To think that some of the Blood Bank staff seemingly were aware of this error as far back as three years ago, and did nothing and I mean nothing. What has happened to owning up to a mistake?
I would like to know how the Minister can say, with such conviction, that there are only 15 victims at most of the contaminated blood. Does the Minister know how HIV can be transmitted, or does he think that all of the victims have lived celibate lives?
Now that we are fully aware of the problem, he must move now to make sure nothing is left to chance until all victims are identified. He should now make it compulsory that the Blood Board in the future must report any such incidents to the Minister. Yours, etc., Battery Road, Longford.