Dengue takes deadly turn in Khulna
Khulna is witnessing a sharp and alarming rise in dengue cases, with two more patients dying of the mosquito-borne disease and 75 new patients being admitted to hospitals across the division in the past 24 hours.
According to a report signed by Md Mosharraf Hossain, Director of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) in Khulna Division, recently 53 of the newly admitted patients were treated at government hospitals while 22 were admitted to private facilities. Both of the deceased were residents of Khulna district.
The growing number of patients has placed hospitals under severe pressure.
At Khulna General Hospital, the two medicine wards have only 25 beds, but 61 dengue patients were being treated there. The hospital has 110 beds in total, yet 162 patients are currently receiving treatment.
“Many patients have to be turned away because there is simply not enough space,” said hospital superintendent Dr Rafiqul Islam Gazi. He said around 80 percent of patients visiting the outpatient department are arriving with fever.
According to him, the hospital has adequate stocks of dengue testing kits and medical supplies, and every patient who can be accommodated is receiving treatment.
The situation at Khulna Medical College Hospital is equally concerning. The medicine ward has 40 beds, but 113 dengue patients were being treated there yesterday. Due to the shortage of beds, patients are also being accommodated in the paediatric ward, as well as on hospital corridors and floors.
Hospital superintendent Dr Md Akhtaruzzaman said there was no shortage of medicines or testing kits despite the surge in patients. He added that preparations were underway to open a separate dengue unit in the emergency department on the ground floor if the number of patients increases further.
At City Medical College Hospital, all 15 beds in the dengue ward are occupied. Nineteen cabins have also been converted for dengue patients as the pressure continues to mount. Even then, around 10 patients had to return without admission because no beds were available, said hospital director Dr Mostafa Kamal.
Similarly, many patients are being turned away from Islami Bank Hospital.
Khulna recorded the highest number of new admissions, with 40 patients, followed by Bagerhat with 28. Four patients were admitted in Narail, two in Meherpur and one in Kushtia.
Since January 1 this year, a total of 3,191 dengue patients were admitted to hospitals across Khulna Division. Of them, 2,777 have recovered and been discharged, while 365 are currently undergoing treatment. Another 37 patients have been referred to other hospitals.
The division has recorded 12 dengue-related deaths so far this year. Nine deaths occurred at Khulna Medical College Hospital, while two were reported in Khulna district and one in Bagerhat.
Health officials said the number of dengue cases has been rising since July, with the situation deteriorating rapidly since the beginning of August. Government statistics show that 506 patients were admitted to hospitals between Saturday and Thursday, although no deaths were reported during that period.
Meanwhile, Khulna City Corporation (KCC) Administrator Nazrul Islam Manju visited the ongoing anti-dengue “crash programme” in the Municipal Tank Road area and Rupsha Natun Bazar Char Colony on recently.
Expressing concern over the situation, Manju said, “We were shocked to see the severity of the situation while visiting several hospitals. Except for the medical college hospital, no hospital has vacant beds.”
He stressed the need to destroy Aedes mosquito breeding grounds and urged city residents and the government to cooperate in tackling the worsening dengue situation.
“We have mobilized all our resources to deal with the dengue outbreak. We need the cooperation of city residents and the government in this fight,” he said.
