The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has instructed citizens to not do their shopping in groups and avoid crowding shops in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus.
It also urged everyone to not roam around shopping malls or adjacent areas without reason.
A spokesperson for Covid-19 management at the DGHS, Dr Mohammad Robed Amin, who is also line director of the DGHS’s NCDC unit, mentioned a series of instructions to tackle the pandemic situation in the regular Covid-19 bulletin on Wednesday.
Dr Robed Amin said people with fever, cough, breathing problems, comorbidities and the elderly should avoid visiting shopping malls or kitchen markets. “These people have a higher risk of contracting the virus, and if they do, their condition will be more critical.”
He also advised shoppers to maintain a distance of at least three feet from other customers as well as shopkeepers.
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“If there is a lack of space inside a shop, wait until the crowd thins down before entering,” he added.
People should also wash their clothes with soap as soon as possible after returning home from shopping centres, Dr Robed Amin said.
People might take coronavirus instead of joy home ahead of Eid if they were not careful, the public health expert forewarned.
‘No scarcity of medical oxygen supply’
The supply of medical oxygen has emerged as one of the most important factors in treating Covid-19 patients, with demand for it skyrocketing in recent months not only in Bangladesh but throughout the world.
Holding out the assurance that there was no scarcity of oxygen supply in Bangladesh, Prof Robed Amin said that currently, 121 district, specialized and medical college hospitals of the country had central oxygen supply systems in place.
“Moreover, 1,623 high flow nasal cannulas and 1,400 oxygen concentrators have already been distributed throughout the country,” he added.
The health authorities in Bangladesh were also working actively to ensure that non-Covid-19 patients received necessary medical attention amid the pandemic, the DGHS official said.
Expressing concern over the recent surge in Covid-19 deaths, Dr Robed Amin said data showed that the infection rate had dropped recently to 9% from 25% recorded last month.
However, he said, it was nothing to be ecstatic about as the test-positivity rate might rise again if hygiene rules were not followed.
He also asked suspected Covid-19 patients to opt for antigen tests, often referred to as rapid tests, to get their reports within a short period of time.
The DGHS, in collaboration with Brac, started antigen-based Covid-19 rapid testing a couple of weeks ago. Antigen tests are conducted at 266 government labs at present.