Doctors on the front lines continue to suffer casualties in the fight against Covid-19, with 37 fresh infections among medics confirmed as of 8am on Saturday.
According to Bangladesh Doctors’ Foundation (BDF), the total number of infected doctors now stands at 324, a six-fold increase from 54 on April 14. About 25 doctors were infected per day over the 11-day period.
Numerous health professionals other than doctors have also been infected.
The majority of the infections continue to be from Dhaka, followed by Narayanganj, Gazipur and Kishoreganj. Most cases were at government hospitals.
The tally of infected doctors crossed the 300 mark around 9pm on Friday. The first 200 infections among doctors were confirmed by April 21, and the first 100 by April 17.
The upward trend of infections among doctors continues amidst widespread discontent from healthcare professionals regarding the quality and distribution of personal protection equipment (PPE). Several media reports have also questioned the quality of PPE provided to doctors.
A government doctor was recently issued with a show-cause letter for criticising the health authorities regarding the PPE issue.
Dr Nirupam Das, founder and chief administrator of BDF, said infected doctors accounted for nearly 13% of the total number of registered physicians in the country.
“All other health workers combined, the percentage of infected healthcare professionals stands at a little over 16%, which is higher than that of the US and even Italy,” he added.
Around 11% of health professionals have contracted the novel coronavirus in the US and 9.7% in Italy thus far, said Dr Nirupam.
Bangladesh reported the first death of a doctor diagnosed with Covid-19 on April 15. Earlier, on April 12, a doctor died with symptoms similar to Covid-19 in Dhaka.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Thursday urged government employees not to speak to the media without obtaining permission from higher authorities.
