Private health service must be monitored effectively
20 April 2023
That
Bangladesh's prevailing public healthcare system is in a very sorry
state cannot be overemphasised, but due to absence of proper monitoring
the country's private health facilities are also beset with innumerable
problems. In recent days the country has seen a spurt in the growth of
hospitals, clinics and diagnostic centres at the private initiative due
to increase in number of patients as well as overall absence of quality
public health service delivery system.
On a few occasions the
government initiated countrywide drives against unauthorised health
facilities, and hundreds of illegal private hospitals, clinics,
diagnostic centres and blood banks were closed. But these drives were
not enough. Health service delivery is not like cosmetic business.
Instead of taking treatment of patients as a service, people involved in
this business are mostly fleecing the gullible and helpless patients.
In
the country many maternity clinics are being opened only to perform
caesarian operations even though in most cases this procedure is just
not necessary. In the past we noticed when drives were conducted;
doctors, nurses and other staff fled from unlicensed hospitals. In one
case in Narayanganj, they fled leaving a mother and her just-delivered
newborn on the operating table after hearing that the Directorate
General of Health Services (DGHS) was going to raid the hospital.
During
the peak of Covid-19 pandemic, the nation was shocked to see two
private hospitals providing exam tests for Covid-19 without any testing
altogether. Money-making motive shamelessly dominates the healthcare
business here. Go to a private clinic with just a seasonal fever, and
you will be advised to perform several tests where doctors get kickbacks
in the name of 'commission'. Even this allegation can be made against
doctors of famous private hospitals operating in the capital.
Therefore,
besides improving service delivery at the public health facilities, it
is vitally important that all private hospitals, clinics and diagnostic
centres of the country should be brought under a strict supervision
system so that they provide at least some standard of health service to
the patients. We cannot let the people involved in the private health
delivery system do as they please.
