AT least a dozen people with different illnesses died in Dhaka and other places after they were refused treatment by doctors since March 8 when the first case of coronavirus was reported in the country. Many said a sense of insecurity caused by the persisting shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) among healthcare professionals could be blamed for the situation. Besides, the lack of other medical facilities for COVID-19 patients left healthcare professionals exposed to the risk of getting infected. The Health Ministry on March 25 ordered doctors to treat patients with COVID-19-like symptoms even if they didn’t have the PPEs. The Ministry withdrew the notice on March 27 amid widespread criticism. Doctors have been working sincerely since the government started supplying PPEs to different hospitals across the country. Only 15 of 573 government hospitals are sending attendance data to the DGHS. In nine of those hospitals, only 2.46 per cent of employees went to work while the rate is only 2.03 per cent in six medical college hospitals.
The DGHS asked all divisional directors and civil surgeons to take action against the physicians who will remain absent. As of Thursday, the DGHS has supplied 357,250 PPEs to government hospitals and encouraged doctors to return to work. Many hospitals have prepared isolation wards and engaged dedicated employees to treat COVID-19 patients. To treat COVID-19 patients, hospitals have dedicated 4,600 beds, but the necessary ICU equipment, like ICU bed, ventilator and especial suit are reportedly still inadequate. The government should have to gain confidence from doctors and the PPEs must be according to the WHO guideline, while treatment facilities, equipment, diagnosing facilities should be available to tackle the emergency. If doctors infected by the virus and remain unaware, they can communicate the virus to many others.
Doctors, the frontline soldiers in the war against the deadly pathogen, should be well-armed with necessary protective gears, medicine, diagnose and testing kits, medical staff and logistic support. We must secure their lives first to make secure our lives.
