Doctors at upazila hospitals

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THE government has rightly made it mandatory for medical graduates to work for two years at the upazila level to qualify for post-graduate courses.
It seems that the government wants to improve quality of health services for all. In addition to posting doctors at upazilas, the government must also make sustained efforts to improve other aspects of health-service-delivery as well.
The requirement of work at the upazila level for two years for the medical graduates to undertake advanced courses would go some way to address the shortage of doctors and other healthcare personnel in the rural areas. But we want to know whether the doctors will continue to serve the rural communities after getting higher education at government expenses.
The clinics and hospitals in rural areas must be provided with modern facilities, improved logistics and qualified technicians. However, monitoring is required to ensure that corruption does not eat up the funds. Most of our state-run heath centres in the rural areas are ill-equipped, poorly-manned and badly managed, which serve as disincentives for qualified and dedicated healthcare professionals to serve in those institutions.
One of the reasons why doctors do not want to serve rural communities is the general lack of basic facilities in rural areas, such as good schools and colleges where they can send their children. These issues also need to addressed.
To provide access on the part of the people living in the rural to better healthcare services, all these issues need to be addressed.

Ahmed Sobhan
Dhanmondi R/A
Dhaka