The New Nation - Internet Edition

ABM Moniruddin

The Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare of Bangladesh claims that the country has a doctor patient ratio of 1:3169 (as declared by the health adviser on 06-04-2007 in the conference hall of that ministry), considering all the doctors (42,881) registered so far with the BM & DC. However, there is a gross error in the report of working Physicians (Govt. & Private) available for care & treatment of ailing patients. Because, many of the doctors (42,881) registered so far with the BM & DC have already expired (dead) & many of the doctors (42,881) registered so far with the BM & DC have left Bangladesh, working abroad (most of whom will not return as they have undertaken the citizenship of foreign countries), & many of the doctors (42,881) registered so far with the BM & DC are no longer involved in care & treatment, that is, they are either involved in business or some other profession, or retired, i.e., they are quite old & disable for involvement in care & treatment of people of Bangladesh. When all these factors are rightly considered, number of working, living Physicians (Govt. & Private) available for care & treatment of ailing patients would be probably less than 13,000. Thus there seems to be a gross error in the report of working Physicians available for care & treatment of people of Bangladesh.

This error needs to be corrected. It is very sad to state that as the Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare is run by bureaucrats who de facto possess no responsibility sincerely will take no step to correct the statistical errors of health. Still it is the prime responsibility of the Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare to correct all discrepancies in health statistics.

The Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare in collaboration of Directorate General of Health Services & BM and DC should first enlist the registered doctors who are living & working in Bangladesh. The BM & DC should enlist the registered doctors who have already expired. The BM & DC along with the Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare should also enlist the registered doctors who are no longer involved in care & treatment of ailing patients, that is, they are either involved in business or some other profession, or retired, i.e., quite old & disable for involvement in caring & treating people of Bangladesh. Moreover, a good number of registered doctors are involved in health administration, who are in no way directly involved in caring & treating patients. They should also be enlisted. The Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare in collaboration of Directorate General of Health Services & BM and DC should also enlist the registered doctors who left the country for job & also for job plus citizenship abroad. The Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare can't avoid its pivotal role in correcting all existing discrepancies in health statistics.

It has been learnt that at present there are 6,220 posts of graduate MBBS doctors & 2229 posts of qualified diploma nurses are lying vacant in the governmental sector. Not only that, a huge number of manpower amounting to 30,367 posts / personnels are lying vacant throughout the country.

It is the prime responsibility of the Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare of Bangladesh to take initial necessary steps to appoint manpower against these vacant posts. But it is very sad to state that the Ministry is quite careless & indifferent to perform its sacred duty. Rather the said ministry is engaged to promulgate a 'National Health Policy' based on very very weak foundation to vicimize the innocent working doctors.

The ministry abhors the existing labour rules & laws. It makes the EOC doctors bound work 24 hours in a day & 168 hours in a week, without any rest & pause. There is none in the government to see & to remove all these inhuman discrepancies in the health sector.

It is needless to say that when a country is having gross false statistics, all the plans, policies & programs based on false statistics are worthless. The Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare of Bangladesh is going to announce a 'National Health Policy' based on these false statistics, but empowered by the law & force of prevailing state of Emergency declared by his highness the hon'ble president. It is to be recollected that our population is increasing by 2.5 millions each year & the number of graduate et qualified doctors are not increasing proportionately.

Can we expect this CTG to extend its honest hand to solve these problems in the health sector for the greater interest of our beloved country & countrymen?