The teenage son of a doctor who died after pleading for PPE last night demanded an apology from Health Secretary Matt Hancock.
Dr Abdul Mabud Chowdhury, 52, warned the government about the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS staff.
The consultant urologist is one of more than 166 NHS and social care workers to die after contracting coronavirus.
Today, in an open letter shared with the Sunday Mirror, his heartbroken son Intisar, 18, called on the health secretary to acknowledge his mistakes.
He told the under-fire minister: “Do not let my father’s death be in vain.”
Intisar, whose dad worked at Homerton hospital in Hackney, east London, also backed the Sunday Mirror’s campaign to reward our healthcare heroes.
We are calling for a special daily allowance to be paid immediately to nurses, doctors, support staff and care workers who are putting their lives on the line.
Intisar added: “Nurses, doctors, care workers and so many others put their lives on the line every day to save the British public.
“My father would be proud to support the campaign for a special daily allowance.”
Open letter to Matt Hancock in full
Dear Matt Hancock,
My father, Dr Abdul Mabud Chowdhury, was an NHS hero who gave his life for this country.
He saw at first hand the shortages of PPE for workers treating coronavirus patients.
While my father was unwell, he wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister appealing for more PPE.
His request went ignored and two weeks later he passed away. He was only 52.
Today, I write an open letter to you in the hope that you might learn from my father’s tragic death.
My family cannot rule out that a lack of PPE caused my father’s death. For many other frontline workers, the relationship between inadequate protection and death is even more evident.
Yet in 2016, you were warned that the NHS would be overwhelmed if a pandemic hit.
Exercise Cygnus was the government’s opportunity to prepare for the global crisis we see today.
While PPE does expire, making it more difficult to stockpile, why did you wait for the death toll to rise before taking action?
Having never worked as a medical professional yourself, you also had no right to imply NHS workers had misused PPE. There is a shortage of PPE – it is not being overused. To say otherwise shows complete disrespect to my father’s death.
Other workers in hospitals, such as cleaners and technicians, also require protection. As do staff in care homes. What are you doing to ensure that they can return safely to their families at night?
I am not expecting perfection, but I do expect that your mistakes are admitted and learned from. I ask you again to acknowledge the Government’s errors in responding to the virus and become a leading example by being the first to hold yourself accountable.
I have no political affiliation and this is not a political attack. This is a human rights crisis.
My father cared about his colleagues. He wanted to make sure they were protected – that’s why he spoke out. Do not let my father’s death be in vain.
My father was an amazing man, as are all the NHS and social care workers who have lost their lives. Please do not let them become statistics.
Kind regards,
Intisar Chowdhury, 18.
