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Editorial

Ensuring affordable healthcare services

Govt to recruit 10,000 doctors


Bangladeshpost
Published : 23 Dec 2019 08:02 PM | Updated : 05 Sep 2020 07:54 AM

It is encouraging to note that the government has taken an initiative to recruit 10,000 physicians aiming to ensure healthcare services for the people. As part of the move, the government has already appointed 4,607 physicians through the 39th BCS.

Improving the quality of medical care in Bangladesh has been a high priority over the last decades and a large share of the health budget in Bangla­desh goes to the doctors’ pocket working with the public hospitals and clinics. As salaries are used inefficiently because of poor motivation and performance of doctors, a large chunk of public money gets wasted. Hence, evaluating the performance of doctors is crucial for reinforcing the country’s health system. One major source of inefficient use of salaries is conspicuous absence of doctors and nurses. It is very unfortunate for us as a nation that our government spends millions from its budget to make doctors and equip them with adequate training but these doctors neglect their duties.


Evaluating the performance of 

doctors is crucial for reinforcing 

the country’s health system ability


Though the government has taken many initiatives to modernise the country’s healthcare system with modern and hi-tech facilities, people are not getting the required healthcare services from many centres. The government has taken certain steps to ensure health facilities at grassroots, but the tendency of doing private practice by government doctors is making the task difficult.

In Bangladesh, scarcity of doctors is a very common phenomenon particularly in rural areas where they are most needed. The country currently has one registered physician per 1,847 people while the ratio for a government physician is 1:6,579. Against this backdrop it is saddening that physicians appointed at public hospitals and health centres have long been involved in private practices, ignoring their duties at their respective workplaces. As a result, people especially the poor have been the victim of such unlawful and unethical practices over the past many years. In order to put an end to such unethical practices, constant vigilance from the part of the authorities concerned is a must.