Gonoshasthaya Kendra plans to set up plasma bank: Zafrullah

Zafrullah underwent coronavirus test with the kit developed by Gonoshasthaya which found him to be positive. Four days later, a RT-PCR test at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University also found him positive for coronavirus infection

Zafrullah Chowdhury
File photo

After developing a rapid test kit to detect novel coronavirus infections, the Gonoshasthaya Kendra is now planning to set up a plasma bank to help the treatment of critical and elderly COVID-19 patients, reports news agency UNB.

Zafrullah Chowdhury, the founder of Gonoshasthaya, told the news agency on Friday that he has taken an initiative with some other physicians to set up the plasma bank at Gonoshasthaya Kendra.

“After getting infected with coronavirus, I’m lucky that I could receive plasma therapy and am now doing well. So, I feel other coronavirus patients, especially the critical and the elderly, should receive this magical therapy to beat the deadly virus,” Zafrullah said.

He, however, said sufficient fund and equipment are necessary to execute his plan.

Zafrullah, a freedom fighter, tested positive for the highly infectious lung disease virus on Sunday with the kit developed by the Gonoshasthaya Kendra. He was administered with 200ml of O+ blood at Gonoshasthaya Kendra Nagar Hospital on Tuesday afternoon.

If we get the fund, we’ll be able to bring necessary equipment from abroad within a week on a special flight. If we can do it, I think we’ll be able to save many lives
Zafrullah Chowdhury

He said he took the plasma therapy as per the advice of Dhaka Medical College Hospital’s professor Mohiuddin Ahmed Khan.

Zafrullah said Mohiuddin and Dhaka Shishu (paediatric) Hospital’s Harun were working with him to set up the plasma bank.

“If we get the fund, we’ll be able to bring necessary equipment from abroad within a week on a special flight. If we can do it, I think we’ll be able to save many lives,” he said.

As many people are now recovering from the virus infection, he said it will be easy for them to collect plasma and donate it to others.

Besides, the freedom fighter said he plans to provide low-cost treatment and COVID-19 tests at Gonoshasthaya Kendra.

The Kendra founder urged the government to take quick steps to approve Gonoshasthaya’s testing kit so that patients can be easily detected and provided treatment.

Zafrullah underwent coronavirus test with the kit developed by Gonoshasthaya which found him to be positive. Four days later, a RT-PCR test at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) also found him positive for coronavirus infection.

He first underwent antigen test with the kit developed by the Gonoshasthaya Kendra on Sunday as he was suffering from fever and the result was positive. The Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder also got an antibody test using the Gonoshasthaya’s kit on Tuesday, and got positive result.

On 17 March, Gonoshasthaya announced development of a testing kit that can examine samples to detect COVID-19 within 15 minutes, but the kit is yet to be approved by the authorities concerned.

Gonoshasthaya Kendra submitted 200 samples of Rapid Dot Blot kits to the BSMMU authorities to conduct performance study over two weeks ago. The results of the test are yet to be published.

Earlier on 30 April, the DGDA gave Gonoshasthaya permission to get its COVID-19 rapid testing kits tested. The DGDA informed Gonoshasthaya that the performance study of the kits could be done either at the BSMMU or IEDCR.

On 2 May, the BSMMU authorities formed a six-member committee to conduct the performance study of the testing kits as the organisation approached the country’s premier medical university.