Chaos reigned at the city’s Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital on Saturday as thousands turned up to receive a shot overwhelming the medical staff.
Nearly 4,000 vaccine seekers, including men and women, were seen waiting in queues in the corridors of the first and second floors with the vaccination progressing at a snail’s pace.
Outraged by the “mismanagement”, the vaccine seekers said the situation turned worse as there were no separate queues for women.
Tired of the long wait in the queue, the irate crowds got involved in quarrels with Ansar personnel and hospital staff.
Some were seen trying to push each other to enter the vaccination rooms venting their anger amid chaos.
Inside the vaccination rooms, it was found that only two to three nurses were providing shots while another two or three medical staff were checking vaccination registration papers. They had to struggle a lot to cope with the situation for lack of manpower.
The vaccine centre was originally designated for Bangladeshi expatriates before being selected for the mass vaccination, said Suhrawardy Medical College Vice Principal Prof Dr Md Shahadat Hossain.
“As a result, the hospital had to face extra pressure,” he said.
He said the centre sent messages to 1,000 people inviting them to take vaccine shots but about 4,000 turned up. “This hospital has also been dealing with 500 Covid-19 patients besides the vaccination. It’s a huge pressure”
He noted that the centre is providing different brands of vaccines like AstraZeneca, Sinovac, Moderna and Pfizer.
“So, we have to provide the shots very carefully choosing the right brands as some people are coming for the first dose while some are for the second ones,” he added.