Syed Shemul Parvez :
The dengue, record-breaking outbreak of the disease across the country, especially in the capital city, has already turned into an epidemic with 18 dead and around 22,000 infected.
The number of patients hospitalized so far this year has doubled the last year’s figure, hitting 21,235 as of Friday.
A total of 18 people, including five physicians, two pregnant women, three kids and one police officer were killed in dengue fever in the country in one month from July 1 to August 1, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
But the unofficial figure puts the dengue death tolls to around 50.
The hospitals in the capital are struggling to tackle the flow of dengue patients. Most of the hospitals have opened separate dengue wards while many others referring dengue cases to other hospitals as they are already overloaded with such patients.
The situation is feared to worsen in the coming days as a large number of people suspected to be carrying dengue virus would go to their villages in the Eid festival, to be held on August 12.
Meanwhile, experts are saying that the situation would continue to worsen. They are worried that dengue outbreak may continue until October or until the end of November.
The experts suggested people to take personal initiative to remain protected from biting of Aedes mosquito, responsible for the dengue and asked to consult doctors and go under diagnosis soon after being infected in fever.
The government on Friday admitted that dengue has spread to all over the country, indicating that the situation has taken a turn for the worse.
Over 22,919 people were admitted to different hospitals while 16,047 of them were released after treatment till Saturday, the DGHS added.
Borhan Uddin, a Physician of Health Emergency Operations Center under DGHS said, “We can say without a doubt that there’re dengue patients in all 64 districts.
While talking with some guardians of schools’ children in the city, he expressed deep concern over the present panic of dengue. He said that in this situation, we don’t get enough confidence to send our kids to the schools.
Though Dengue has spread to all distracts, mostly affected district are identified as Faridpur, Sirajganj. Mymensingh and sylhet.
In Faridpur, around 140 new patients were admitted to the hospital in the last 24 hours while in Sirajganj, 114 patients, Mymensingh 78, and Syl;het, 119.
The countrymen are in deep panic as the government daily based data showed the dengue as an epidemic situation while most of the patients remain out of the registration in hospitals and clinics
On this issue, Obaidul Quader, General Secretary of Awami League, said that there’s no doubt that Aedes mosquitoes and dengue have spread across the country, but we have got command from the Prime Minister to make the country dengue free.
We already have started working on it and took it as a serious issue, Obaidul Quader added.
He called upon the people to keep patience, saying that the government did not lack in commitment towards getting rid of the situation.
Meanwhile, BNP has criticised the government for failing to tackle the situation and suggested declaring a state of emergency. BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir recommended taking immediate steps to save people instead of making the situation a political issue.
“Dengue has spread all over the country. Experts are saying the situation will continue to worsen. We think the government should declare a state of emergency to face the situation through united efforts,” he said.
Local government division (LGD) and the two city corporations (Dhaka South and Dhaka North) have cancelled the Eid vacation and weekly holidays of all the employees for the proper implementation and intensive monitoring of the campaign for prevention of mosquitoes due to the outbreak of Dengue in the city.
Dr Nasir Uddin, Assistant Director of the DMCH, told the media that the Eid holidays of all intern doctors of the Medicine Department had been canceled.
