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Over 600 nurses infected with coronavirus


Published : 17 May 2020 09:44 PM | Updated : 07 Sep 2020 12:11 AM

As many as 614 nurses working at public and private hospitals across the country have been infected with novel coronavirus till Sunday, a nurses’ rights body has said.

Of the nurses contracting the virus, some 445 are employed at the government hospitals and 169 are at private hospitals with most cases being reported from Dhaka division, according to the Society for Nurses Safety and Rights.

The nurses’ body said around 100 nurses underwent treatment at different hospitals while rest of them was quarantined.
Some 481 cases were reported from Dhaka while 46 from Mymensingh division, 30 in Sylhet, 15 in Chattogram, 13 in Khulna and Rangpur each, eight cases from Rajshahi and Barisal each, they said.

Besides, some 105 nurses contracted with coronavirus at Dhaka Medical College Hospital while 18 in Mitford Hospital, 25 in Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital, two in National Institute of Traumatology & Orthopaedic Rehabilitation , seven in Kuwait Maitri Hospital and Kurmitola General Hospital, 23 in Mugda Medical College Hospital and three in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, according to the nurses’ body.

In private hospitals, 26 nurses have been infected with the virus in Old Dhaka’s Asgar Ali Hospital, seven at KPJ Hospital in Gazipur, 15 at BRB Hospital in Panthapath, 20 at BIRDEM in Shahbag, three at Evercare Hospital (formerly Apollo), 10 each at United and Square, three at Popular (Dhanmondi), two at Ad-Din Medical, six at Insaf Baraka, two at Keraniganj Al Baraka, one at Dhaka Central International Medical, two at Ibn Sina (Dhanmondi), five each at Universal Medical and ICDDRB , 20 at Bangladesh Specialized Hospital, four at Green Life Hospital, five at Regent Hospital (Mirpur), four at National Heart Foundation, one at Bangladesh Medical (Dhanmondi) and four nurses have been infected at CMH Cancer Hospital.

Besides, three nurses at Jalalabad Ragib-Rabeya Medical College in Sylhet and one each at Sylhet Women's Medical and Maternal and Child Hospital in Chattogram contracted coronavirus.

Some 150 nurses so far have recovered from the highly contagious disease, the nurses’ body said.
In case of public hospitals’ nurses, they would receive incentives from the government whereas nurses at private hospitals are not allegedly getting their salaries.

The nurses are, however, dissatisfied since they all are yet to get personal protective equipments (PPEs). Those who got PPEs are complaining on its quality.

“The list of nurses contracting the virus is getting bigger due to lack of adequate safety equipment and necessary training,” said Sabbir Mahmud Tihan of general secretary of Society for Nurses Safety and Rights.

“This is having an adverse effect on the nurses’ mental health,” said the rights group leader urging the government to take necessary measures to protect the nurses’ health as soon as possible.
“Otherwise the country’s healthcare system could be severely threatened,” Tihan warned.