The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Dhaka

Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus Wednesday stressed the need for multifaceted initiatives by private sector alongside government efforts to ensure health services for the people.

He noted that the poor deplore that they do not get health services while the rich go abroad for treatment as they think there is a lack of proper treatment facilities at home.

"Government's large-scale initiatives cannot fulfill the demand of the people for medical treatment. It needs multifaceted private initiatives," he said while laying the foundation stone of the Kidney Foundation Hospital and Research Institute in city's Mirpur area.

He called for more initiatives to expand and improve the medical services.

The Nobel Laureate said he took initiative 15 years ago to establish self-sufficient health centres in rural areas for the poor people under health insurance and set up 38 such health centres.

Each centre had one MBBS doctor and sufficient nurses. But, he said, now a number of these health centres are running without MBBS doctors as those physicians joined other lucrative jobs, including in government organizations.

Dr Yunus, also managing director of Grameen Bank, said he has a cherished dream of establishing an international-standard medical college and hospital and also a nursing college.

"If all, particularly specialist physicians, come forward, my dream will come true," he told his audience.

National Professor and child specialist Dr M R Khan and chairman of the Kidney Foundation Prof Dr Harun-ur Rashid also addressed the function.