DGHS orders free dengue tests at public hospitals

Staff Reporter :
The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has ordered free testing of dengue infection in all government hospitals of the country.
“In order to ensure proper treatment of dengue, free dengue tests will be offered at government hospitals across the country,” said Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services Abul Bashar Mohammad Khurshid Alam after a function at Hotel Intercontinental Dhaka on Friday.
Dr ABM Khurshid Alam said, “Entomologists can better tell when the dengue situation will be under control. However, there is no shortcoming in the health directorate in terms of treatment. Treatment is available at upazila-district levels. Dengue test results are being given free of cost in government hospitals.”
The DGHS director believes that the risk of death due to dengue is increasing due to the fact that dengue is not detected in the early stages and patients’ arrival at hospitals late.
He said, “The local government and the health directorate are working together to control the alarming situation.”
Meanwhile, the country reported death of another dengue patient, while 498 more patients were hospitalised in the 24 hours till Friday morning.
The latest fatality raised this year’s death toll from the viral fever to 162.
Meanwhile, the government hospitals have been directed to conduct dengue tests free of costs.
“We have directed all government hospitals to conduct dengue tests free of costs recently. Many hospitals

have already started it,” Abul Bashar Mohammad Khurshid Alam, the Director General of the the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) told it to the journalists on Friday after attending a meeting in a city hotel in the capital.
As per the DGHS, the latest death was reported from Khulna division, taking its death toll to seven.
The death toll remained unchanged with 100 in Dhaka division, 41 in Chattogram, six in Barishal and at four each in Rajshahi and Mymensingh divisions.
DGHS said that, 325 of the new patients were admitted to different hospitals in Dhaka and 173 outside it.
It said that a total of 3,660 dengue patients, including 2,232 in the capital, are now receiving treatment in hospitals across the country.
The directorate has recorded 41,481 dengue cases and 37,659 recoveries so far this year.
On Thursday, the country reported nine dengue deaths, the highest death toll from dengue in a day this year.
Dengue outbreaks in the country exceeded all previous records in 2019, mostly in the capital city of Dhaka.
A total of 101,354 dengue cases with 179 dengue-related deaths were officially recorded on the year.