Staff Reporter :
Frontline coronavirus fighters in Bangladesh continue to get infected while treating patients at hospitals.
Bangladesh Doctors Foundation (BDF), a forum of physicians, said 352 physicians at private and public hospitals got infected as of Sunday.
“Among them, 274 are in Dhaka division alone,” said Nirupam Das, the chief administrator of the foundation.
The number of infected doctors in Dhaka was 255 on Saturday. In just 24 hours, 19 others have been infected despite.
According to the information BDF released, of the total infected doctors, 240 are from different government hospitals, 84 from private hospitals while 28 were shown in other category in seven divisions.
The BDF data show that 33 doctors were infected in Mymensingh division, 12 in Chattogram, seven in Khulna, nine in Barishal, six in Sylhet, three in Rangpur and 13 other physicians are show in other category.
According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the country had only six doctors, nurses, and midwives for every 10,000 people until July, 2019.
Asked about the safety of doctors while treating coronavirus patients, Dr Nirupam on Saturday said there is no alternative to personal protective equipment (PPE), quality gowns, masks, gloves and goggles for doctors’ safety.
BDF has 90,000 members across the country, Dr Nirupam informed.
Bangladesh has so far confirmed 4,998 coronavirus cases and 140 deaths.