Law on cards to regulate pvt medical colleges

FE Team | Published: February 09, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

The government is actively considering enacting a law to force the private medical colleges to fulfill their conditions in a bid to ensure quality medical education.
Health Minister Mohammad Nasim, who after assuming office talking tough against errant doctors, made the disclosure in an interview with UNB Thursday at his secretariat office.
"We've a policy to run the private medical colleges. But, many private medical colleges don't comply with it. Even many others don't have adequate structures, good faculty members as well as hospitals. So, we need to enact a law. No medical college will get government approval if doesn't meet the required conditions," he said.
Nasim, also the presidium member of the ruling Awami League (AL), said the main aim of a medical collage is to provide service. "If an institution focuses on business, service doesn't get the due attention, though that's the priority. Business should also be service-oriented one."
"There are some people who want to do business in every sector. RMG sector businessmen, fish exporters too want to take licenses for setting up medical colleges. If they want to set up good hospitals, good schools that's fine, but they have to abide by the related laws if they want to invest in medical college. So, we want to enact a law so that no one can escape taking advantage of loopholes in laws," the Health Minister said.
During the interview, the Awami League leader talked about many issues related to health, including the private medical college, community clinic, and manpower, the presence of doctors in rural hospitals, health insurance, budget and fake medicines.
To ensure the presence of doctors in hospitals in the countryside, the minister said the government is thinking to give incentives to the physicians who will work in hospitals in remote areas.
"The government has a decision that the doctors who will remain on-duty in rural hospitals for a stipulated time, she will get priority for admission to the postgraduate courses," he added.
A meeting of the National Health Council will be convened in the last week of this month, the minister said adding, "We've already sought the Prime Minister's schedule for the meeting as she heads the council."
Issues like health insurance, incentive for doctors and transformation of the health policy into law, will be discussed at the council. "We'll take a decision in the meeting on providing health insurance as it is provided in the welfare states of the globe. We'll discuss how it'll be implemented among the poor and middle-income group."
Mentioning that the country has got a health policy in place, Nasim said the policy will be transformed into a law so that nothing can take place beyond its ambit.