US donating 15 new, state-of-the-art ventilators to Bhutan to assist in fight against COVID

The grant also includes micro, small and medium-sized enterprise support initiatives to assist Bhutan's economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, it added. "In September, USAID, in coordination with the Bhutan Foundation, also donated 2,00,000 cloth masks to the Ministry of Health of Bhutan for distribution to vulnerable communities, including the elderly and pregnant women, to prevent the spread of COVID-19," the statement said.


PTI | New Delhi | Updated: 25-11-2020 14:08 IST | Created: 25-11-2020 13:42 IST
US donating 15 new, state-of-the-art ventilators to Bhutan to assist in fight against COVID
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The US on Wednesday said it is donating 15 new, state-of-the-art ventilators to Bhutan through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to assist the country in its fight against COVID-19. In a statement, the US embassy said the ventilators are compact and easy to deploy, and support a range of care functions, allowing healthcare workers to respond to the fluctuating needs of coronavirus patients.

Announcing the assistance, US Ambassador to India Kenneth I Juster said the United States government is pleased to donate 15 ventilators to Bhutan. "We look forward to continued collaboration between our countries as we work together to combat the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.

The USAID is funding a package of support that includes warranties, the statement said. "This donation builds upon the USD 1 million that USAID committed to the Bhutan Foundation in April to support COVID-19 relief efforts," it said.

The statement said in coordination with Bhutan, USAID and the Bhutan Foundation are strengthening diagnostic laboratory capabilities and clinical case-management, providing virtual training for healthcare providers and lab personnel, and developing communications materials on COVID-19 prevention, readiness and response. The grant also includes micro, small and medium-sized enterprise support initiatives to assist Bhutan's economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, it added.

"In September, USAID, in coordination with the Bhutan Foundation, also donated 2,00,000 cloth masks to the Ministry of Health of Bhutan for distribution to vulnerable communities, including the elderly and pregnant women, to prevent the spread of COVID-19," the statement said. 

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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