Prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday said her government would set up a trust fund like the education assistance trust fund so that none can shut down the community clinics with the change in government, news agency BSS reports.
Sheikh Hasina said her government has established the prime minister’s Education Assistance Trust Fund to provide support to the education sector and the students up to the degree level are now getting scholarship from the fund.
“In the same way, we would set up a trust fund for a smooth running of the community clinics to ensure health service for the people. These are basic rights of the people through which the country would be developed and freed from the curse of poverty,” she said.
The PM said this while addressing a function on the occasion of distribution of the best Community Clinic Awards-2014 and inauguration of “e-learning programme” for the Community Healthcare Providers at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in Dhaka this morning.
Health minister Mohammad Nasim, state minister for Health Zahid Malek, PM’s former advisor on health and social welfare professor Dr Syed Modasser Ali were present as the special guests, while health secretary Syed Manzurul Islam was in the chair.
Bangladesh representative of the World Health Organization Dr N Paranitharan attended the function as the guest of honour and project director of Revitalisation of Community Healthcare Initiatives in Bangladesh Dr Makhduma Nargis gave the welcome address.
Earlier, the prime minister distributed awards among the best community clinics selected from each division.
Outlining her plan for setting up the trust fund for the health sector, the prime minister said there would be an account for the community clinics run by the local people. “The donation from the well-off people, different organizations and the people who receive services from the clinics would also be accepted,” she said.
In this connection, she cited her past bitter experience of shutting down the Awami League established community clinics by the BNP-Jamaat government and said local people from now on would run the community clinics. “This would make the community clinics permanent and economically self-reliant,” she said.
The prime minister said the people will have to build a mentality of reducing dependence on the government in every work. “They will have to come out of the habit of dependence on the government in every work, rather they will have to think that that we could do and we want to do,” she said.
Terming the community clinics as a bright example of people’s empowerment, Sheikh Hasina said the local people are running and overseeing these clinics.
“The government is supplying medicines and manpower, while the members of the community and support groups are working for small repairing, maintenance and development,” she said.
In this connection, the prime minister urged the community clinic healthcare providers to remain alert so that none can sell the medicines of the clinics by depriving the people of getting free healthcare services.
Putting emphasis on writing the services of the community clinics on their walls, Sheikh Hasina said a list of the medicines available in the community clinics could be hanged from the wall.
Sheikh Hasina also called upon different donor agencies, NGOs and benevolent people to come forward to the development of the community clinics. “Do truly something for the poor and underprivileged rural people,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said her government after taking office in 1996 launched the work on establishing community clinics across the country to reach the primary healthcare services to the doorsteps of the common people.
The prime minister noted that the government started the work with a target of setting up 18,000 clinics during its 1996-2001 tenure, and 10,723 clinics began their operation during the period.
“But after coming to power in 2001, the BNP-Jamaat government shut down the clinics out of political vengeance, depriving the common people of medicare services,” she said.
Assuming office again 2009, she said, her government took initiatives for resuming the operation of the closed down community clinics. As many as 13,500 clinics have so far been established and of them, 12,906 clinics are providing services, she said.
Sheikh Hasina said 30 types of emergency medicines are supplied free of cost from the community clinics and annual budget for each clinic for this purpose is Taka 1.10 lakh.
“The people have so far received services from the community clinics by visiting these clinics for over 40 crore times and 80 percent of the visitors were women and children,” she said.
Spelling out her government steps for the health sector development, the prime minister said her administration has established the first medical university in the country, while the work on setting up two medical universities-one in Chittagong and other in Rajshahi-is going on.
“We would establish a medical university at every divisional headquarters for ensuring higher education for medical students,” she said.
In this connection, the prime minister opined for not establishing medical colleges here and there. “It is not right to set up medical college here and there, rather the medical colleges will have to be established in those areas where there is a necessity and as per the policy.
While talking about the e-learning programme for community health providers that has been launched from today, Sheikh Hasina said through this programme, professional skill development of the community health service providers would be possible and they would be able to learn new techniques and provide better services.
Congratulating the winners of the best Community Clinic Awards, Sheikh Hasina urged them to give attention to increasing the quality of the service of the community clinics.
Source: prothom-alo
