DHAKA, April 27, 2020 (BSS) – Health officials at a press conference today
said Gonoshasthaya Kendra does not maintain proper protocols for its
developed rapid kits, which are required to make those valid and useful for
testing samples of COVID-19.
In case of any medical development, required protocols must be followed to
make new invention acceptable, valid and useful in healthcare services, they
told the briefing in the conference room of the Health Ministry here.
The media cell under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare hosted the
press briefing, an official release said.
Director General of Drug Administration Major General Mahbubur Rahman and
Additional Secretary of the department of health services and also convenor
of the newly formed media cell Md Habibur Rahman, among others, addressed the
briefing.
Mahbubur said the government has extended all kinds of cooperation to the
Gonoshasthaya Kendra for carrying out their activities to develop kits for
testing samples of coronavirus. “But the organization (Gonoshasthaya Kendra)
does not maintain the protocol while performing their activities for
invention of kits,” he added.
The Drug Administration chief said Dr. Zafrullah Chowdhury, founder of
Gonoshasthaya Kendra, made objectionable, false and baseless remarks against
organizations under the health ministry, at a press conference held
yesterday, for tarnishing image of the government.
About rapid kits developed by Gonoshasthaya Kendra, Habibur said World
Health Organization (WHO) does not give approval for using rapid kits to any
country, for testing samples of COVID-19.
In such situation, there is no scope for using their rapid kits for testing
coronavirus cases, he added. The country has over one lakh kits, which are
enough to deal with the pandemic, he added.
The health ministry sources said RT-PCR kits are being used for testing
samples for COVID-19 in the country. Rapid kits are not being used in the
country for testing the deadly virus as it is not recognized by WHO, it
added.
In Bangladesh, seven more deaths were reported today from the novel
coronavirus (COVID-19) overnight and the country recorded 497 fresh positive
cases.
As of today (April 27), a total of 152 COVID-19 patients died in the
country while the total number of the COVID-19 cases has so far reached 5913.