COVID-19 Updates

In accordance to a report from the World Health Organization (WHO), as of Week 21 (24-30 May, 2021), there were 1,188 positive cases out of a total of 43,687 tested in the Rohingya refugee camps. In week 21 alone, there were there were 175 positive cases out of 1,204 test samples. A total of 17 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported thus far. 

This course has been developed by HAEFA in collaboration with Project HOPE and The Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Studies of Brown University, USA, with support from Save the Children Bangladesh and USAID. It is intended for physicians in Bangladesh who are working in Upazila (sub-district) health complexes, district hospitals, tertiary and medical college hospitals, private and corporate Hospitals, outpatient departments, as well as for physicians providing telemedicine for patients managed at home. In addition to COVID-19, the course covers management of patients’ nutrition, mental health of both patients and healthcare professionals, and vaccinations. The main objective of this course is to help physicians acquire the most up-to-date, evidence-based COVID-19 management clinical knowledge and skills in an easily digestible and interactive manner. 

Cervical cancer is one of the largest health threats facing women in Bangladesh today. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), over 50 million Bangladeshi women are at high risk of developing cervical cancer.  Additionally, the IARC also reports that an average of 17,686 new cases and over 10,000 deaths due to cervical cancer occur annually. If cervical cancer is diagnosed early through a cancer screening process (before it becomes fully invasive) the condition can usually be treated successfully. Bangladeshi women from less affluent socioeconomic areas are at the highest risk of developing cervical cancer due to a lack of screening & treatment opportunities, as well as proper education concerning cancer risk factors.

The project will be piloted from 2021 to 2023 as part of the Health and Gender Support Project for host communities in Cox’s bazar funded by the World Bank. It requires doctors, nurses and midwives to be trained to perform cervical examination following acetic acid treatment and colposcope examination. Additionally, they will be trained to do precancerous treatment (thermocoagulation) and be able treat patients with positive colposcopy results. Patients with higher lesions will be referred for further cervical cancer treatment and management in tertiary level hospitals if necessary. 

This program is an extension of HAEFA's ongoing cervical cancer screening (since October 2019) for underprivileged women in remote areas of Bangladesh in 3 Northern sub-districts of Kurigram, where we have already screened 15,251 and treated for 152 women.