Special Correspondent: Sanjib Bhattacharjee
The controversy that began over the death of 4-year-old child Wise Kuruni Avhan from Dengue Shock Syndrome at Universal Medical College Hospital in Dhaka has now turned into a complex battle of truth and falsehood. At yesterday’s press conference, the child’s family gave one contradictory statement after another. Sometimes it is said that the death was due to wrong treatment, sometimes that treatment for something other than dengue was given. Netizens and conscious circles have already expressed irritation at these inconsistent statements.
Doctors’ Community Statement and the Reality of Dengue Treatment
The doctors’ community has clearly stated that even though the dengue test result came negative, treatment for dengue fever was given on the basis of other tests and clinical findings, which is completely scientific and in accordance with international guidelines. The notable point is that there is no specific treatment for dengue fever. It is mainly dependent on supportive care. However, when dengue takes a complicated form and myocarditis develops as in this child, the expensive injection IVIG used in advanced world-class treatment is administered. This injection once used to cost over a lakh taka when brought from abroad. At present, Incepta company is marketing it in the country, so the cost has come down a lot. In the case of child Avhan also, this world-class treatment was ensured.
Unmasking of Fake Bill and Misleading Propaganda
The hospital authorities have stated that the bill circulated on social media is fake and misleading. According to the hospital’s original bill records, the total bill amount of child Wise Kuruni Avhan (Patient ID A260928001182) was Tk 1,75,287. On special consideration, the hospital authorities gave a discount of nearly Tk 59,000 from this bill and received only Tk 1,16,551 from the family. That is, the bill circulated on social media is completely fabricated and created with the intention of making the hospital controversial. It has been learned that the hospital authorities are considering taking legal action against this falsehood.
From the bill details it is seen that the highest quality life-saving measures including echo, X-ray, special pathology tests, ABG blood gas analysis, intubation, nebulisation, oxygen supply, syringe pump, ventilator charge and PICU service were taken in the child’s treatment. Any educated person analysing this bill will understand that the amount of the bill was reasonable compared to the services provided.
Far-Reaching Damage of This Attack on Hospitals and the Medical System
The matter is not limited to just one hospital. A terrible trend is emerging across the country. In Chattogram the number of measles patients has increased alarmingly and there are not enough isolation and ICU beds. An 8-month-old child with measles along with pneumonia is not getting an ICU bed despite searching all day. At least four specialist doctors have washed their hands by advising to go to government hospitals. Private hospitals are gradually becoming reluctant to take responsibility for critical patients.
The main reason behind this reluctance is the propaganda of unprofessional media and social media, which is putting doctors and hospitals face to face with the public without knowing or understanding. The grief of a deceased child’s family can be felt, but using that grief to systematically try to destroy the medical system is suicidal for society.
For measles a separate ICU is needed because it is highly contagious and keeping them with general ICU patients risks spreading to other children. Although there is government initiative, it is not keeping pace with demand. Learning from this situation, building separate ICU facilities for infectious diseases is now the demand of the time.
Analysing the overall situation, one truth becomes clear. Progress of the health system is not possible by creating distrust and disbelief towards doctors. Rather, if this path is taken, ordinary people will be the ones most affected. If the mentality that when someone goes to a hospital all responsibility is of the hospital is not abandoned, one day no doctor or hospital will agree to take critical patients in hand. Then the pressure on government hospitals will increase so much that the entire health system will collapse.
In this incident, the planned attempt by those involved to break the health system by exciting ordinary people with provocative statements, propaganda, wrong interpretations and unscientific information across the country, against this the government and administration must now take the strictest measures as an essential demand of the time. It must be remembered that if effective steps are not taken against this propaganda today, then in the future no one in the country will want to become a doctor. And on that day the greatest danger will fall on the ordinary people of this country, for whom doctors are working every day risking their lives. To prevent this situation, the government, media and ordinary people all must play a responsible role.
News Published By:
Bangladesh Diary
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