Barguna main hotspot : Dengue situation worsening in Barishal Division
Barishal Bureau
The dengue situation in Barishal Division has been deteriorating.
In the last 24 hours endung on Thursday, three more people have died in the division due to dengue. With this, the death toll in the division from January this year until now stands at seven. Of these, five were residents of Barguna district.
The Barishal Divisional Health Directorate reported that from Wednesday morning to Thursday morning, over the past 24 hours, 124 dengue patients were admitted to government hospitals in the division. As of June 12 this year, a total of 2,486 people have been admitted to hospitals in the division due to dengue. Of the 124 patients admitted in the last 24 hours, 67 are from Barguna alone.
Among the three who died, two passed away at Barguna General Hospital. They were Chan Miya (75) from Charpara village in Barguna Sadar upazila and Gosai Das (85) from Thanapara in the municipal area. Additionally, another patient, Israt Jahan (20), died at Barishal Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital. She was a resident of Sutiakathi village in Pirojpur’s Nesarabad upazila.
The health department stated that the dengue situation in Barguna is the most severe. In the last 24 hours alone, 67 new cases were reported in the district, and two people died. From January until now, 1,552 people have been admitted to hospitals in the district, accounting for more than 60 percent of the total cases in the division.
Doctors at Barguna’s 250-bed General Hospital said that Barguna municipal area is the main hotspot for dengue. Every neighborhood now has dengue patients. The disease has also spread to villages outside the town. Currently, 193 dengue patients are under treatment at the hospital. This has severely disrupted treatment services for other patients. Although the hospital has 54 doctor positions, only 18 are currently filled. These doctors are struggling to cope with the dengue outbreak.
Dr. Nihar Ranjan Baidya, a doctor at the hospital, told The Country Today that providing services to dengue patients in government hospitals has become difficult due to the shortage of doctors. Barguna has been identified as a hotspot for a month. He said doctors and nurses are struggling to manage the patient load. The lack of long-term management in this situation has become a serious concern.
In response, senior health department officials held an emergency meeting in Barguna on Wednesday. The meeting was attended by Shyamal Krishna Mondal, director of the Divisional Health Directorate. Speaking to The Country Today on Thursday afternoon, he said they are not certain why dengue has spread so much in Barguna. What is evident is that the environment here, with garbage, stagnant water, and lack of cleanliness, is conducive to dengue. They have instructed locals to raise awareness.
Besides, two doctors have been urgently deployed to address the doctor shortage at the hospital, with two more expected to arrive soon.
While the situation in other districts of the division is relatively under control, it is not free from risk. Currently, 974 patients are still under treatment in the division. Of these, the highest number, 193, are admitted to various hospitals in Barguna.
Barishal Sadar and Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital have 99 patients, Patuakhali has 18, Pirojpur has 7, and Jhalakathi has 6. No patients have been identified in Bhola yet.
