United States Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller has commended the epidemiologists and public health experts of Bangladesh for the role they have played and continue to play in tackling the Covid-19 situation.
He was speaking at the inaugural session of the seminar, “First Bangladesh Congress on Epidemiology and Public Health”, on Wednesday at The Westin Dhaka.
Highlighting the importance of the conference, the ambassador said, “I am here to support the efforts of many to give greater focus on the fields of epidemiology and public health both globally and here in Bangladesh.”
“The pandemic has taught us many things, including policy and action, which are only as effective as the science and data they are built upon. We can promote mask-wearing and social distancing, as we are doing here today, because we know the science and data tell us it works,” he said.
“We can promote vaccination because the data from the vaccine trials and post vaccination surveillance tells us the vaccines are safe and effective. None of this is possible without epidemiologists and public health experts,” the envoy added.
Meanwhile, CDC Bangladesh Country Director Dr Michael Friedman said: “We are proud of the remarkable achievements of the CDC-funded Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) since its establishment in 2014, but more must be done.”
“The government of Bangladesh and international partners need to scale up programs like the FETP and create Health Ministry posts in each district for these medical professionals to reach the needed target of 850 fully trained and employed local field epidemiologists,” he added.
Friedman added: “The Covid-19 pandemic has taught the world that epidemiologists are vital and can be a great career choice for young health professionals wanting to make a difference in their community, their country or the world.”
The CDC-funded congress is one of many initiatives of the US government along with more than $73 million in assistance over the past year to support Bangladesh’s Covid-19 response efforts.
CDC Bangladesh was partnering with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and other central and local government entities, medical and research associations, and others on a number of initiatives to build the country’s capacity to prevent the spread of diseases and help Bangladeshis live healthy lives, said the organizers.
The two-day in-person and online event was arranged with the aim of bringing together epidemiologists, researchers, public health professionals, faculty of community medicine from Bangladesh and other countries to share their experiences in the field of public health.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in cooperation with the Ministry of Health Affairs, the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research, and the Epidemiology Association of Bangladesh organized the program.
