Dhaka, October 20 (IANS). According to local media reports, four more people died of dengue in the 24 hours to Monday morning. With this, the number of deaths due to dengue fever increased to 249 this year. The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) reported that 942 more patients were hospitalized due to viral fever during the same period, bringing the total number of cases to 60,791, reports United News of Bangladesh. A total of 575 people lost their lives in Bangladesh last year. During the same period, 101,214 dengue cases were reported, while 100,040 people recovered from dengue. On September 16, DGHS issued new instructions for government hospitals to ensure treatment of dengue patients. According to these guidelines, all hospitals in Bangladesh will have to set up dedicated wards for dengue treatment and assemble a specialized medical team. DGHS Director (Hospitals and Clinics) Abu Hussain Mohammad Mainul Ahsan issued this directive. The Directorate General of Health (DGHS) said that hospitals will have to make special arrangements for the treatment of dengue patients. According to the Bangladeshi newspaper Dhaka Tribune, hospitals have been asked to ensure facilities for NS-1 testing, emergency care and adequate medicine for patients. Dengue patients should be kept in a separate ward or room in the hospital and priority should be given to ICU if necessary. Special responsibilities were assigned to doctors and nurses. The instructions said that a committee of medicine, paediatrics and other specialist doctors should be constituted to treat dengue and chikungunya patients. Under the supervision of this committee, trained doctors, medical officers and residents will look after the patients. This committee and doctors will consider suspected patients who come to the outpatient department of the hospital to be treated. In addition, hospital directors were instructed to write to the city corporation or municipality and carry out mosquito eradication and cleanliness drives around the hospital premises. Also, a dengue coordination meeting should be organized every Saturday in the hospital under the chairmanship of the Director, Superintendent and Civil Surgeon. –IANS PSK Share this story Tags
Bangladesh: Four more deaths due to dengue recorded, death toll reaches 249
