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4 years ago

‘Over 20,000 isolation beds ready for COVID-19 patients’

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Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Wednesday said more than 20,000 corona isolation beds are now ready across the country for treatment of coronavirus patients.

The minister came up with the statement after visiting a new corona isolation centre at Bashundhara Convention Centre in the capital, reports UNB.

The minister said another 4,500 new corona isolation beds are prepared at Bashundhara Convention Centre, DNCC Market and four floors of Dia Bari in the capital to deal with coronavirus patients.

Zahid Maleque said it would be possible to open these corona isolation hospitals within a week.

He said there are 2,000 beds at the Bashundhara Convention Centre, 1,300 at the DNCC Market and 1200 at Uttara Diabari, which are now fully ready.

Besides, 601 more institutions in districts and upazilas, including the capital, are ready for use as corona isolation centres. In total, over 20,000 corona isolation beds have now been set up in the country to deal with corona, the minister added.

Backing the reopening of some industries and mills in the country on a limited scale, he said the decision has been taken so that no one starve and suffer becoming jobless during the lockdown. Besides, lockdowns have been relaxed in many countries, including Italy and France. New Zealand has already lifted its lockdown and the country has returned to a normal life.

 “If everything goes well, we’ll be able to go back to a normal life soon,” he said.

The government is also recruiting 2,000 more doctors and 6,000 nurses. An adequate of isolation beds, ICU centres, ventilators and oxygen cylinders facilities will be increased as well.

More importantly, the minister said, several medical technologists are being recruited through outsourcing.

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