A more streamlined method to test blood collected from Shanghai donors will be in place by 2010, health officials have announced.

All eight blood-collection centers in rural areas would send samples from each donor to test for diseases such as AIDs and hepatitis to a central laboratory at Shanghai Blood Center, the officials said.

Sophisticated equipment at the center can send test results back to rural clinics within two days, ensuring the screened blood can be redistributed to hospitals.

And each bag of donated blood would carry a bar code and be tracked throughout its storage and use, officials said.

The new system would also sharpen the accuracy of blood tests, said Zhang Xi, director of Shanghai Blood Center's blood department. He was speaking at a conference to mark the 10th anniversary of China's blood-donation laws.

Pilot trials will begin at two rural centers this year and will gradually spread to the other eight blood clinics. When in place, Shanghai will be China's first city with a unified blood-screening system.

"It is international practice to restrict the number of blood-testing centers to one or a few to ensure blood safety," said Zhang. "There are only four such centers in the United States."

All eight umbrella branches of the Shanghai Blood Center had been linked with a sophisticated information system, said officials from the Shanghai Health Bureau.

The clinics will store the blood while samples are being screened, before distributing it to hospitals that need it.

Shanghai has collected enough blood from local donors to meet demand since 2006. From January to June, the city collected 45,000 liters of blood.

Promotions in October will encourage blood donations in Shanghai, including an online competition at pandian.shblood.org.cn.

(Shanghai Daily October 1, 2008)