Diagnostic tests at Mugda Hospital

Private hospitals and diagnostic facilities in Bangladesh charge exorbitantly for medical tests. They generally charge multiple times the fees public hospitals do. For the ordinary people, these charges are unaffordable while the number of government-run hospitals is quite inadequate. One such public hospital is Mugda Medical College Hospital in Dhaka city. The hospital has a modern pathological laboratory, where various kinds of diagnostic tests are carried out every day. However, it is unfortunate that this hospital does not conduct medical tests unless they are prescribed by its in-house physicians.
Recently I went to the Mugda hospital for performing some diagnostic tests advised by a doctor who does not work in this hospital. I was told that it was not possible. One of the hospital officials said that they conduct diagnostic tests only when they are advised by their own physicians. For me, this incident is not just surprising but also shocking because public hospitals are set up to serve patients from all walks of life.
As pathological tests performed in government hospitals are reliable and cost less, people prefer the tests to be done in these hospitals. So, every public hospital should perform diagnostic tests without considering which doctor has advised them. And Mugda Medical College Hospital should not be an exception.

Md Ashraf Hossain,
120, Middle Bashabo, Dhaka,
mah120cb@yahoo.com