In need of quality private healthcare facilities
Tuesday, 7 October 2008
Fahmida Akhter
PRIVATE healthcare services are no doubt extending their services to a large number of people. Therefore, there are powerful arguments in favour of retaining and enlarging the private healthcare system in the country. Pathological testing centres, clinics and heart treatment and operation facilities of international standard in Bangladesh have been established in private sector in recent years. Testing for diagnosis and treatment in many areas have improved and the treatment costs have come down for many, who previously had to go abroad for the purpose. This is, no doubt, meeting the requirements of the middle class and higher middle class of people in the country, besides opening the medical sector to private investment. However, the country still lacks quality institutions for the treaty of kidney diseases or cancer.
Kidney patients in the country await quality institutions to come for dialysis and other kidney treatment. Entrepreneurs can set up quality dialysis centres. Private investment would also be welcome for setting up hospitals for kidney transplantation as well as orthopaedic units and cancer treatment.
The private sector medical care needs to grow alongside the public sector. But such expansion should in no way neglect quality. So far, the private medical clinics in the country have given the patients a mixed experiences. In some cases, though limited, the patients got quality service while in may others they did not get their money's worth. Press reports abound about substandard treatment at private clinics. Besides, private medical colleges have been set up which do not or can not provide proper or practical medical education to their students.
There is a pressing need to enforce the regulations to improve the standard of service in the private health sector. The government should also lower the taxes on imported medical equipment and reduce the charges for investing in private medical care facilities. These steps can help accelerate investment in this field and should, in the longer term, cut down the drainage' of resources on foreign medical treatment by Bangladeshis.
PRIVATE healthcare services are no doubt extending their services to a large number of people. Therefore, there are powerful arguments in favour of retaining and enlarging the private healthcare system in the country. Pathological testing centres, clinics and heart treatment and operation facilities of international standard in Bangladesh have been established in private sector in recent years. Testing for diagnosis and treatment in many areas have improved and the treatment costs have come down for many, who previously had to go abroad for the purpose. This is, no doubt, meeting the requirements of the middle class and higher middle class of people in the country, besides opening the medical sector to private investment. However, the country still lacks quality institutions for the treaty of kidney diseases or cancer.
Kidney patients in the country await quality institutions to come for dialysis and other kidney treatment. Entrepreneurs can set up quality dialysis centres. Private investment would also be welcome for setting up hospitals for kidney transplantation as well as orthopaedic units and cancer treatment.
The private sector medical care needs to grow alongside the public sector. But such expansion should in no way neglect quality. So far, the private medical clinics in the country have given the patients a mixed experiences. In some cases, though limited, the patients got quality service while in may others they did not get their money's worth. Press reports abound about substandard treatment at private clinics. Besides, private medical colleges have been set up which do not or can not provide proper or practical medical education to their students.
There is a pressing need to enforce the regulations to improve the standard of service in the private health sector. The government should also lower the taxes on imported medical equipment and reduce the charges for investing in private medical care facilities. These steps can help accelerate investment in this field and should, in the longer term, cut down the drainage' of resources on foreign medical treatment by Bangladeshis.