An assistant professor of medicine Dr Moyeen Uddin of Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College and Hospital died of coronavirus infection on Wednesday at the age of 50. He is the first physician of Bangladesh to die of the pandemic virus. It happens amid healthcare providers concern of inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE) to deal coronavirus.
Health Minister Zahid Maleque, and the Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) expressed their condolences over the death. The government announced to take care of his family as he left behind his wife, also a doctor, and two sons – 12 years and seven years. Director General for health services Prof Abul Kalam Azad said they had informed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina soon after his death. "The Prime Minister expressed her deep condolences. She also instructed us to stand by the family".
The prime minister earlier announced insurance facilities for the healthcare providers. “He was the frontline fighter against COVID-19 in Sylhet,” BMA said in a statement. The doctor passed away at 6:45 am on Wednesday at Kurmitola General Hospital in Dhaka where he was fighting for life in the last three days after being diagnosed as COVID-19 on April 5.
The health minister expressed grief and offered sympathies to the family members. “Today we’ve lost a comrade,” he said at the daily health bulletin, adding that “his family will be taken care of” as per Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s directives. Prof Azad said the safety of every health worker, even at the union level, will be ensured. He passed MBBS from Dhaka Medical College. He completed his post-graduation in both medicine and cardiology.
