Physicians urged to improve quality of eye treatment
March 19, 2009
The health and family welfare minister, AFM Ruhal Huq, has urged the ophthalmologists to enhance their research facilities for ensuring treatment to the country’s poor people at cheap rate. ‘Despite manpower crisis in this sector, physicians have to improve the quality of the eye treatment as well as make it affordable for poor rural patients,’ the health minister said while inaugurating the 36th Annual National Conference of Ophthalmological Society of Bangladesh in Dhaka on Wednesday. Ophthalmological Society of Bangladesh, a society of eye physicians, with the slogan ‘Better Sight, Better Life’, is organising the four-day conference at BCPS Complex. OSB president and prime minister’s special adviser Professor Syed Modasser Ali chaired the inaugural ceremony. Ruhal Huq also said the government would extend all-out co-operation in developing National Institute of Ophthalmology to increase the facilities for the eye specialists to reach the treatment to the grassroots level. The health minister urged the authorities concerned to maintain a network among the district and upazila level hospitals and community health centres to ensure better and emergency health services for the people. In his speech, Professor Syed Modasser Ali said the government would establish 50-bed hospitals at all the upazilas to meet the Vision-2021 in health sector.
The adviser informed that out of total budget of the health sector, about 60 per cent are spent in primary health sector. The government would also include the primary eye treatment in the budget to control and provide treatment of eye diseases.
OSB secretary general Professor Sheikh MA Mannaf demanded establishment of a ‘Centre of Excellence’ eye hospital and College of Ophthalmology to meet the demand of quality physicians. He requested the government to reduce import tax on medical equipment for providing eye treatment at an affordable rate for poor. Professor Mannaf informed that some 350 eye patients are getting treatment from OSB hospital daily.
Professor MA Matin, Professor MA Hadi Fakir, Director General of Health Services Professor Shah Monir Hossain, among others, spoke. Over 700 eye physicians from different parts of the country are participating in the conference. OSB handed over ‘Life Time Achievement Award 2009’ to Professor Rabiul Hosain, Professor Mizanur Rahman, Professor M Altaf Hossain and Professor Anwarul Islam while M Abdul Muhit received ‘MA Matin Gold Medal 2009’.
Source: New Age
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