Amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, doctors here have demanded a specialized hospital to treat healthcare personnel who may get infected in attending to coronavirus patients.
Several physicians told Dhaka Tribune they will not be able to ensure proper treatment to Covid-19 patients if they themselves cannot stay free of the virus.
The Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) till Monday confirmed 33 coronavirus cases, which includes multiple health officials.
Covid-19 has so far killed more than 15,000 people in over 190 countries, including three from Bangladesh.
Contacted, Bangladesh Doctors' Foundation's Chief Administrator Dr Nirupom Das said: “We, just like everybody else, are scared and worried about the ongoing situation. Everything has been shut down to stop the spread of the virus, but unlike anyone else, we will have to be on duty to serve the people.
“So we want to prepare a specialized hospital to provide treatment to doctors who get infected by the deadly virus.”
“We have already selected a hospital to establish a‘BDF Corona Care Centre’ only for doctors which had 10 general and four ICU beds at Dhaka’s Muktijoddha Tower-1. But the residents there are against the initiative. However, we are still trying to convince them.”
“If we can’t set up the hospital there, we will try other locations with the help of the government,” he added.
Meanwhile, Dr Mustafa Jalal Mohiuddin, president of the Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA), said: “Doctors are the ones who will provide the frontline services required to combat this pandemic. But already we have one doctor who has been infected by the virus while treating a patient.
“We need not exactly a specialized hospital, but we need to do something for our doctors.”
He also said they have informed the government to take necessary steps to ensure the safety of doctors.
Former Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Vice Chancellor, Prof Dr Kamrul Hasan Khan, said: “This virus is quickly spreading around the world and anyone can get infected. We need to take proper precautions. One of our doctors has already been affected.
“Protection has to be ensured immediately for health service providers including doctors, otherwise the crisis may worsen.”
Earlier on Sunday, a doctor of Delta Medical College, Mirpur, confirmed he tested positive for the virus after he came in contact with the second patient who died due to Covid-19 infection in Bangladesh.
Recently, the health condition of the doctor has been termed stable and his family has been put under home quarantine at their residence.
