One-stop screening, sample collection launched at Mugda Hospital

Digital Healthcare Solutions launched a one-stop screening (triage) and sample collection for Covid-19 patients at Mugda Medical College Hospital in Dhaka this morning.

The system which will be free of cost for the users was inaugurated through an online video call by Saber Hossain Chowdhury MP, chairman of Mugda General Hospital Management Committee.

The first of the new digital booths was installed as a part of the "Essential Healthcare for the Disadvantaged in Bangladesh (EHD)" programme financed by Department for International Development of the UK government and under the supervision of Concern Worldwide.

The digital booths will have video calling facilities with doctors and will help increase capacity for Covid-19 screening and testing.

Screening will be done entirely digitally, through tele-medicine, whereas sample collection and transportation will be done by trained lab technicians, according to a facebook post by Shumon Sengupta, project director of EHD.

The test results will be available to patients within 48 hours, the post also read.

Institute for Developing Science and Health Initiatives (ideSHi) and authorities of Mugda Medical College Hospital extended their overall support for the programme.

The other participants of the online inauguration ceremony were Dr Ferdous Kadri, head of ideSHi and emeritus scientist of icddr,b; Dr Md Kaysar Manor, senior scientist at ideSHi; Dr Rowson Anwar, director of Mugda Medical College Hospital; Sajid Rahman, CEO of Digital Healthcare Solutions; Hasina Rahman, country director of Concern Worldwide; Shumon Sengupta, project director of EHD; Dr Shafiqul Islam, health advisor, DFID Bangladesh; and Dr Sharmin Jahan, head of ecosystem and business development, Digital Healthcare Solutions.

The ceremony was conducted by Dr Khaled Hasan, head of clinical operations, Digital Healthcare Solutions.