No test facilities outside Dhaka, Chattogram

Despite repeated promises, the government could not ensure decentralising of testing facilities for COVID-19 patients across the country as so far only a centre outside the capital was conducting the tests.

The only test centre outside the capital has been set up at the Bangladesh Institute of Tropical and Infectious Diseases in the port city of Chattogram, with a daily capacity of handling merely 40 samples.

Officials said that labs in Mymensingh, Rajshahi and Rangpur have been set up but so far these labs did not test a single sample.

Wednesday evening, health secretary Ashadul Islam said that test facilities for detecting COVID-19 would be widened across the country soon so that all the suspected patients are tested.

Speaking at an online news briefing in the evening after a high-level meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office, he said seven test centres have been set up in the capital and three outside the capital.

‘A total of 28 test centres will be set up soon so that all the suspected patients are brought under tests,’ he said.

Asadul said the meeting at the PMO was attended by different divisions of the government and professional bodies including Bangladesh Medical Association.

While the World Health Organisation and public health experts stressed the need of widespread testing of people, the government’s limited capability of testing a small number of people exposed the public to the risk of the spread of the highly contagious viral disease.

The actual risks of novel coronavirus infection in Bangladesh were still unknown, the experts said.

The government’s disease monitoring arm, the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research, could not determine the sources of infections of five people.

IEDCR director Meerjady Sabrina Flora admitted that limited-scale community transmission was occurring in the country.

‘Now a number of test centres have been opened and you will make phone calls to them. They are trained and they will collect samples and let you know the test results,’ he said in an online news conference organised by Management Information System director of Directorate General of Health Services.

People in fear of infections are calling the IEDCR and other health call centres seeking help, but the number of tests done still remained small.

The government assigned the IEDCR as the lead authority for testing patients with symptoms of COVID-19.

Although five labs, excluding the IEDCR, have been prepared for testing in the capital, most of them remained underutilised. They include Icddr,b, Institute of Public Health, Dhaka Shishu Hospital, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Institute of Developing Science and Health Initiative.  

According to the Directorate General of Health Services, as of Tuesday, Icddr,b tested 169 samples, though the Icddr,b authorities denied this.

As of Tuesday, the IPH tested only one sample while Dhaka Shishu Hospital tested four and Armed Forces Institute of Pathology tested 21. The BITD lab in Chattogram so far tested only 28.

World Health Organisation former regional adviser Muzaherul Huq said that the government should increase the capacity for testing more people and isolate them if found positive for coronavirus.

New Age staff correspondent in Sylhet reported quoting Sylhet Osmani Medical College deputy director Himangshu Lal Roy that works of installing lab for testing COVID-19 was underway.

‘We are hopeful that tests for coronavirus would be started in the lab by next Monday,’ said Himangshu.

New Age correspondent in Barishal reported quoting Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital director Bakir Hossain that the works for installing lab for testing coronavirus was on.

‘It needs at least a week,’ said Bakir.

New Age Rangpur correspondent reported quoting Rangpur Medical College Hospital director Faridul Islam Chowdhury that the installation of lab was completed on Wednesday and the tests would be started from Thursday.

Mymensingh Medical College microbiology associate professor Salma Akhter, however, said that they had collected four samples on Wednesday for the first time to conduct the test, New Age correspondent in the divisional headquarters reported.

But the MIS director Habibur Rahman said on Wednesday afternoon that the lab in Mymensingh Medical College Hospital was yet to start testing.

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net