In response to seven Sickle Cell deaths reported in a single week the meeting, led by Minister Sadiq Al Shehabi and other officials, was aimed at coming up with solutions to help solve this urgent matter.
The Minister indicated a shortage in facilities and staff to tackle the demand needed to solve the problem and stressed the importance of improving treatment and giving the best services to Sickle Cell patients. He urged the Ministers of Social Development, Labor and Education, as well as both the private and public sector to be collectively involved in providing employment, physiological comfort, social stability and better living conditions.
According to the Ministry of Health there are currently 18,000 patients being treated in the Salmaniya Medical Centre (SMC) and those numbers are likely to increase. Consequently the Ministry is putting together a protocol to follow in which the main goal is to reduce the number of fatalities. To contribute to the support of the Ministry, campaigners in Bahrain have offered suggestions for raising community awareness and building on the first- hand experience of families supporting Sickle Cell patients. Sickle Cell Disease is an inherited condition and occurs more frequently in countries where consanguineous marriage is common.