The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has asked for special funds for the management of the new coronavirus in Bangladesh. The ministry wrote a letter to the finance ministry seeking Tk 100 crore or Tk 1 billion for strengthening the preparations across Bangladesh. Bangladesh Post obtained a copy of the letter the finance division received on March 8 when Bangladesh announced the first three cases – two in people who returned from Italy and the other in a family member.
The health ministry in the letter also said that they need funds immediately for the preparations of isolation ward, ICUs, supportive care, buying testing kits and some other equipment. “Steps have been already taken to buy those,” according to the letter. “In this regard, we need a bulk allocation from the revised budget of 2019-2020,” the health ministry said.
Earlier, the government postponed all the major events including the grand opening ceremony of the Mujib Borsho – the birth centenary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman – on March 17. Foreign dignitaries including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi deferred his visit following the rearrangements of the Bangladesh government.
People have been also asked to avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands, and maintain at least 1 metre (3 feet) distance from anyone who is coughing or sneezing. Viruses that affect the respiratory system enter the body through mucosal membranes which are found in the nose, oral cavity and lips. With poor hand hygiene, it is easy to acquire a viral infection this way.
The IEDCR also asked people to call the hotline numbers– 01937000011, 01937110011, 01927711784 and 01927711785 – if needed. The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness and dry cough. Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhoea.
Most people (about 80 percent) recover from the disease without needing special treatment, according to the WHO. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, are more likely to develop serious illness.