PM urges physicians to provide treatment to common people staying at respective stations:

PM urges physicians to provide treatment to common people staying at respective stations:

DHAKA, July 29 (BSS)-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today called upon physicians to provide adequate treatment to the common people especially the poor and distressed by staying at their respective working places in rural areas. "You have to render adequate medicare services to the common people living in rural areas and keeping in mind that you have become doctors with tax payers' money," she said. The Prime Minister said this while addressing the "Doctors Conference-2010" organized by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust at Ganabhaban here this morning. Sheikh Hasina, also the chairperson of the trust, said her present government, like the previous DHAKA, July 29 (BSS)-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today called upon physicians to provide adequate treatment to the common people especially the poor and distressed by staying at their respective working places in rural areas.

"You have to render adequate medicare services to the common people living in rural areas and keeping in mind that you have become doctors with tax payers' money," she said.

The Prime Minister said this while addressing the "Doctors Conference-2010" organized by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust at Ganabhaban here this morning.

Sheikh Hasina, also the chairperson of the trust, said her present government, like the previous one, is working relentlessly to reach healthcare facilities to the doorstep of the people.

Referring to the country's health services run with fund from the exchequer, she said the physicians must render their due service to the people specially the poor and the distressed staying beside them as every citizen has an enormous contribution to producing a doctor in the country.

The Prime Minister said politics of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was for the poor and the hapless to attain their socio-economic emancipation.

Referring to the long struggle of Bangabandhu for building an independent and sovereign Bangladesh, she said her government is working hard to materialize the dream of Bangabandhu through building a happy and prosperous Bangladesh where none will die for lack of food and treatment.

She said following the path of the Father of the Nation her present government, like in the past, have taken beneficial programs, including setting up community health clinics, appointing doctors, nurses and other medical staff and raising facilities at the hospitals, for the wellbeing of the poor.

Listing her government's endeavours for the development of the country's health sector to build a healthy nation, she said it has undertaken massive programmes, including reintroducing community health clinics, imparting modern training to physicians, increasing their facilities and raising beds at different hospitals.

The Prime Minister said her government has taken steps to set up at least one burn unit at all government hospitals across the country along with increasing facilities at the existing DMCH burn unit to facilitate treatment of the burn injured.

Besides, she said steps are underway to upgrade all the 35-bed upazila hospitals to 50-bed and 250-bed district level hospitals to 500-bed.

Regarding training of the doctors, she said her government will send doctors abroad for acquiring expertise on modern treatment.

If needed, we will bring foreign trainers in Bangladesh so that maximum of the doctors could participate in the training programme.

About promotion of doctors, she said her government will take speedy measurers to give promotion to doctors for fulfilling the vacant posts of teachers in different medical colleges across the
country.

"If needed, we will take steps to enact new laws and bringing amendments to the existing rules and regulations to this end," she said adding that she is ready to take any risk in this regard.

The Prime Minister said her previous government after assuming office took steps to set up 18,000 community clinics across the country to reach healthcare facilities to the doorsteps of the people.

But, she regretted that the past BNP- Jamaat government suspended the project and turned a number of clinics into goat rearing farms.

Now, we have revived the community clinic projects for the greater national interest.

In these connections, she said her government has already appointed 35,00 doctors on an ad-hoc basis and another 5,000 would be given appointment soon to provide better healthcare services to the people.

In this context, she referred that her previous government reduced taxes on medical equipment and in some cases it withdrew the same against some emergency appliances.

Referring to the activities of the Bangabandhu Memorial Trust, she said the trust has been set up for doing something good for the poor and distressed humanity and extending support for reducing their sufferings.

She said under its student's stipend programme, 1000- 1200 students are providing stipend to run their studies while Sheikh Russel Stipend has been launched at University Laboratory School and Sheikh Kamal Stipend at Sociology Department of Dhaka University for the meritorious students.

Apart from this, she said work on setting up a specialized hospital and a nursing institution in Gazipur is progressing fast under the initiative of Bangabandhu Memorial Trust.

Expressing her gratitude to the physicians who voluntarily provided healthcare service under the "Free Medicare Service" of the trust, the Prime Minister said they have set a rare example in the world's history by providing their services for the cause of distressed humanity.

Among others, Health Minister Dr. AFM Ruhal Haque, Health Advisor to the Prime Minister Prof Dr. Syed Modasser Ali, State Minister for Health Dr. Captain (retd) Mujibur Rahman Fakir, president of Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) Prof. Mahmud Hasan, member secretary of Bangabandhu Memorial Trust Sheikh Hafizur Rahman, Nazmul Hasan, MP, adviser of the trust Habib-e-Millat, MP, and member of the trust Syed Siddiqur Rahman also spoke on the occasion.

About 8,000 physicians from across the country who took part in the Free Treatment Program of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust attended the conference.

Nearly nine lakh poor people in 476 upazilas across the country were given free treatment under the program from January 10 to March 17 this year in which over 10,000 physicians provided volunteer services to the patients. The Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Memorial Trust was formed in 1994.
(Source : BSS)

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