The rising cost of medical treatment is making common people helpless in the country. Increased prices of medicine items and additional charges of physicians are depriving many complicated patients of medical care treatment. Besides, in most cases, the physicians ask the patients to conduct unnecessary and irrelevant tests at their chosen clinics only to extract more money.
We have seen a mushroom growth of clinics everywhere in the country over the last few years. Although some provide good services in exchange of huge amount of money, many others are unable to do that but extract excess bills from the patients. Some clinics even do not have adequate medical equipment but they are providing treatment only for doing business.
In this regard, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina several times issued strict warnings to government physicians and nurses to do their respective duties properly or quit their jobs. But the fact is that the doctors are not attending their duties in government hospitals across the country as they are busy with practice at their respective private chambers and clinics. Physicians in Bangladesh can carry out private practice unlike many countries in the world where government physicians are not allowed to do private practice. Also, there is an attitude among nurses that they will not serve patients as they have been promoted to second-class jobs.
The government should devise necessary
measures to ensure access to affordable
and quality health services for all
A recent health ministry study says increased health expenditure due to rise in non-communicable diseases has pushed over 4.64 crore people to below poverty line, creating impediment to achieving health-related Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
On 12 December 2012, the United Nations General Assembly endorsed a resolution urging countries to accelerate progress toward universal health coverage (UHC) – the idea that everyone everywhere should have access to quality, affordable health care - as an essential priority for international development. And since 2017, the International Universal Health Coverage Day (UHC Day) is being observed on December 12.
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We think the governments, international organisations, civil society organisations, private sector, and media will do their best to keep holding leaders, our health systems and ourselves accountable to the promise of healthcare for all. Doctors and nurses have a great responsibility to the society in order to reduce out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure on healthcare.
The government also needs to fix the fees of healthcare services at different private hospitals immediately as per their service standards in a bid to reduce the harassment of patients.
Also, the government should devise necessary measures to ensure access to affordable and quality healthcare for all.
