The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) has honoured 20 members of its staff for their outstanding contribution to humanitarian work at the Rohingya refugee camps and tackling the diarrhoeal outbreak in Dhaka.
The centre recognized their efforts at a ceremony organized at its Mohakhali office on Thursday.
Of the awardees, 10 were recognized for their work during the early days of the Rohingya influx in September last year, when they conducted an initial risk assessment in the refugee or Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMNs) camps in Cox’s Bazar.
They are- scientist Dr Ashraful Islam Khan, project coordinators Dr Md Shariful Islam and Dr Fahima Chowdhury, consultant Dr Tajul Islam Bari, project research manager Dr Shah Alam Siddique, senior research investigator Dr Md Taufiqul Islam, field research officers Md Asaduzzaman, Md Mahmudur Rahman Khan and Tapas Paul, and field research assistant Md Mizanur Rahman.
The other 10 awardees were recognized for their contribution in tackling a major diarrhoeal outbreak in Dhaka.
They are- medical officer Dr Shoeb Bin Islam, clinical fellow Dr Md Marzan Kabir, study physician Dr Rumana Sharmmin, senior staff nurses Jannatul Nahar and Raushan Alam, fellow nurses Mawsumi Akter and Rebeka Sultana, health workers Halima Begum and Rokeya, and attendant Md Abul Kashem.
According to the icddr,b, it has by itself treated a total of 55,222 diarrhoeal cases between March and May this year, the highest since the 2007 floods.
Executive Director of icddr,b Prof John D Clemens chaired the event with Health Ministry Secretary Md Serajul Huq attending as chief guest.
Serajul congratulated those who were particularly involved in the vaccination campaign in Rohingya camps and in the management of the diarrhoeal outbreak in Dhaka for their good work.
Clemens said: “It gives us immense pleasure to recognize all our extraordinary staff for having shown commitment, confidence and compassion while delivering excellent services to protect the FDMN population in Cox’s Bazar and during the outbreak in Dhaka.”
Established in 1960, the icddr,b is an international public health research institution based in Bangladesh and has been at the forefront of discovering low cost solutions to key health challenges facing people living in poverty and provides robust evidence of their effectiveness on a large scale.
