10-bed ICU to open at Ctg General Hospital

Covid-19 positive patients in Chattogram in critical conditions are going to get ICU support from today, as a 10-bed ICU is all set to open at Chattogram General Hospital (CGH). The hospital received 10 ventilators and the same number of ICU beds from the government on April 7.

CGH is one of the two hospitals in Chattogram dedicated to treating Covid-19 patients, the other being Bangladesh Institute of Tropical and Infectious Diseases (BITID). A 100-bed isolation ward was opened in CGH for Covid-19 patients while a 50-bed isolation ward in BITID. However, none of the hospitals had ICU to support patients in critical stages.

"ICU support is essential for patients in a critical stage as in most cases, it was seen that the majority of Covid-19 patients died due to respiratory failure," said Dr Mamunur Rashid, an associate professor at BITID.

The first Covid-19 patient was admitted to CGH on April 2 while 25 such patients have been undergoing treatment at the hospital, said Dr Jamal Mostafa, focal person of Covid-19 treatment there. "So far, eight patients have been released after they got well," he added.

Dr Asim Kumar Nath, superintendent of CGH, said, "We're set to open the unit on Saturday. However, no patient in isolation is critical yet."

Contacted, Dr Hasan Shahriar Kabir, divisional director of Directorate General of Health Services, said, "We have already posted 10 trained doctors to run the ICU." A group of nurses are also being trained in CMCH.

Hailing the initiative, SM Nazer Hissain, central vice president of Consumers Association of Bangladesh, said, "As the hospital has been dedicated to treating Covid-19 patients, the ICU would help save lives of critical patients in Chattogram."