Published in: The Daily Star
Date: 24 July, 2021

At least 250 ventilators arrived in Dhaka last night.

Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, Prime Minister’s Physician Prof Dr ABM Abdullah and other officials from the Directorate General of Health Services received the ventilators at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 8:30pm.

Bangladeshi expatriate doctors in the US — Dr Ziauddin Ahmed, Dr Masudul Hasan, Dr Chowdhurhy Hafiz Hasan, Dr Mahmudur Shams Bappi — and Dr Arifur Rahman in Canada helped get the ventilators from the US, said Prof Abdullah at a short briefing at the airport, expressing gratitude to them for their efforts.

He said the ventilators were first carried from the US to New Delhi, India and were transported by a Biman Bangladesh flight free of cost.

He said the Prime Minister herself instructed all concerned to quickly bring the ventilators.

“You know that setting up ICU is not possible overnight. It needs trained manpower for operating. The ventilators that have arrived are portable and can be used in the rural areas where there are no ICUs,” Dr Abdullah said.

These ventilators will be useful not only for Covid-19 patients but also for others in need, he said.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/health/disease/coronavirus/news/250-ventilators-us-the-way-dhaka-2135971