Gonoshasthaya’s plasma centre opens
Dr Zafrullah slams govt’s Covid-19 strategy
Gonoshasthaya Plasma Centre started its journey at Gonoshasthaya Nagar Hospital in the capital's Dhanmondi yesterday, to provide plasma therapy to Covid-19 patients.
Prof Dr Mohiuddin Ahmed Khan, Dhaka Medical College and Hospital's head of hematology department and also head of the consultant committee on plasma therapy, inaugurated the centre while Gonoshasthaya Kendra (GK) founder and trustee Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury and Gonoshasthaya Pharmaceuticals' lead researcher Dr Bijon Kumar Sil were present on the occasion.
Dr Zafrullah said every step the government has taken to tackle the coronavirus outbreak was wrong.
"From China, we got vaccine trial proposal a month ago. If we would have started the trial and if it would become successful, we would also have been benefited. But the government was in indecision," he said.
Zafrullah added that GK has suffered a loss of Tk 10 crore as their Covid-19 antibody testing kit was not approved by the government.
"We invented the first antibody test kit in the world. But due to the government's indecision and other motives, our kit was not approved. People have been deprived of its benefits," said Zafrullah.
Mentioning that 10 countries were eager to procure the antibody test kit, Zafrullah said that they couldn't send it overseas as the registration could not be completed timely.
Dr Zafrullah said plasma is very important for many Covid-19 infected people to beat the virus, and it should be opened at every district.
GK officials said initially the centre would provide plasma to 25 patients, after collecting it from the people who had recovered from Covid-19. From September, they would provide plasma to 50 patients. The centre will only charge Tk 5,000-6,000 for the therapy.
Anyone who has recovered from Covid-19 can donate plasma once every four months, Dr MA Khan said.
"If we can treat elderly Covid-19 patients with plasma therapy in time, it can save many lives," he added, saying plasma therapy could play an important role in treating the virus until an effective vaccine becomes available.