Since the beginning of the serge coronavirus pandemic in Bangladesh front line doctors, nurses and health workers have been complaining about not having sufficient number of personal protective equipment (PPE).
Meanwhile, the government claims that enough PPE is available.
In response to this, ARTICLE 19, the UK based international human rights organization which works for Freedom of Expression (FoE) and Freedom of Information, demands for disclosure of the distribution inventory of PPE to different hospitals and institutions.
Article 19 calls the government to make it public – the name of the institutions that received the PPE along with delivered number of PPE for each of the institution – to fulfil government’s obligation to citizens regarding transparency and accountability.
The organization made the call through a press statement released from its South Asia regional office recently.
Moreover, ARTICLE 19 expressed concern about the lack of coordination in public health management as well as inadequate public health infrastructure, including scarcity of PPE during this coronavirus crisis according to various reports published in different media.
The press statement mentioned that to fight against the pandemic caused by the coronavirus – the doctors, nurses, technicians along with other health workers are in the front line to ensure the accurate treatment of the coronavirus patients by avoiding the infection and contamination – sufficient number of PPE kits are essential for them.
In such a situation it is absolutely important to make sure of the quality and standard of the PPE kits.
ARTICLE 19 Bangladesh and South Asia Regional Director Faruq Faisel said: “About the action plan guidance to deal with coronavirus crisis health disaster management, World Health Organization (WHO) already advised that people have the right to be informed about and understand the health risks that they and their loved one’s face.
“They also have the right to actively participate in the response process.”
“As a part of the coronavirus crisis mitigation process, the health workers as well as the citizens of the country have the right to know about where and how many PPE kits have been distributed until now,“ he added.
Faruq also said: “Right to information is a fundamental human right and the necessity of authentic information is most important at the present situation.
“If the free flow of information is not ensured during such pandemic crisis like the coronavirus, the health service could be hampered, and the possibility of spreading wrong information and fake news might be increased as well.”
Health workers express concern
As per the reports on the mass media, the Health Department has confirmed about countrywide distribution of more than one million pieces of PPE till April 20, 2020.
Health Department statistics show that there 82,051 health workers in the country including the doctors-nurses and others. As such, one person is supposed to have at least 12 pieces of PPE kit according to the claim of the government.
ARTCLE 19 has observed that on the contrary of the government’s claim of a huge number of PPE has been distributed. Many health workers expressed high concern that they did not get any PPE at all.
However, those who have received PPE kits, have raised questions about the quality and the standard of it.
On April 18, 2020, Doctor Abu Taher of Anesthesia Department at Noakhali General Hospital was given “show cause explanation” notice by the hospital authority in reaction of his posting on Facebook status questioning the quality of the masks and about no PPE distribution.
On 16 April, Abu Taher wrote on his Facebook status: “None of my department including me, have received a single n95/kn95/ffp2 mask until now. Even though, why did the Health Secretary lie about giving equivalent mask? In the last month, two PPE were given for eight people in my department.
“This is the sufficient stock of PPE!”
From the very beginning, the doctors and nurses working in different hospitals in the country including in the capital, have been complaining about the lack of enough and quality standard protection kits.
These grievances of the front-line defenders in this crisis were echoed in many reports in different mass media. In such a situation, a notice was issued by Nursing and Midwifery Department on April 15, 2020 for the nurses of government hospitals forbidding them from talking to any mass media.
It is said on the notice that “All the government officers and staffs under the Nursing and Midwifery Department are instructed not to have any kind of discussion with newspaper or any mass media, giving any statement or opinion publicly without prior permission from the higher authority following the government rules.”
Faruq said: “It is unfortunate and at the same time unacceptable to impose this kind of preventive rules instead of reducing the rational worries of the health workers. It is clearly violating the right to freedom of expressions and right to information.’’
The Bangladesh government should uphold its democratic values by withdrawing the “show cause notice” given to Doctor Abu Taher and the office notice issued by the Nursing and Midwifery Department for keeping up the right to freedom of expression and right to information that this government is obliged to the UN body, he added.