Disease prevention, not hospitals, is the government's top priority, says state minister for health

The government wants to place greater emphasis on preventing disease than on hospital-based treatment. To that end, plans have been taken to strengthen healthcare at the grassroots, use modern technology and expand specialised treatment at district level, State Minister for Health Dr M A Muhit has said.

'I am the state minister for health, not the state minister for hospitals. Our main priority is not increasing hospitals, but preventing disease, physical disability and premature death from the grassroots level,' he said. He made the remarks as chief guest at a roundtable titled 'The potential of medical technology in improving healthcare quality', organised by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh at a hotel in the capital on Monday.

The state minister said grassroots health workers are being connected with modern information technology and the Internet of Things, moving away from the traditional healthcare structure. The government has already announced the recruitment of 100,000 new health workers. Alongside their training, there are also plans to provide them with modern medical equipment.

Noting the rising prevalence of non-communicable diseases in the country, he said specialised services are being decentralised at divisional level to reduce the need for patients to rush to Dhaka for such treatment. In future, this kind of treatment will be expanded to every district hospital and medical college.

Highlighting steps to lower the price of medical supplies, the state minister said that in the government's first budget, VAT and taxes were reduced or waived on important items such as heart rings or stents, dialysis filters, active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and artificial eye lenses. At the same time, about Tk 70,000 crore has been allocated to the health sector in the current fiscal year, which he described as the highest in the country's history.

On simplifying the approval process for importing medical supplies, he said a committee that previously did not meet even once in two years has met three times in the past five months and ensured approvals for medical supplies. Reducing import bottlenecks would lessen difficulties for both hospitals and patients, his remarks suggested.

Addressing US companies interested in investing in Bangladesh, the state minister said it would not be enough simply to sell high-priced medical equipment. The lifetime cost of the machines, after-sales service and training opportunities for local engineers and health workers must also be ensured. He also called for initiatives to make engineers from institutions such as BUET and Dhaka University skilled in medical technology, to assemble parts locally and to transfer technology.

The state minister also announced plans to launch a national e-health system and a digital monitoring dashboard to ensure that medical equipment lying idle in government hospitals is actually used. This is expected to make it possible to see centrally which equipment in which hospital is working or out of order.

He also called on multinational companies to support healthcare for disadvantaged and marginalised communities from their corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds. He especially requested the companies to come forward for the treatment of children with disabilities.

Also speaking at the roundtable were Directorate General of Drug Administration Director General Alamgir Hossain, American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh President and Mastercard Vice President Syed Mohammad Kamal, Commercial Counselor at the US Embassy in Dhaka Paul G Frost, and former chairman of Medtronic PLC and Intel Corporation Dr Omar Ishrak.

Also taking part in the discussion were Medtronic Bangladesh Country Director Mayank Tripathi, GE HealthCare Bangladesh Country Head and Director Muhammad Asaduzzaman (Romel), Becton Dickinson Bangladesh Business Lead Mirza Sajeeb Raihan, and AmCham Healthcare Subcommittee In-charge Director and Natco Bangladesh Managing Director Al-Mamun M Rasel.

Overall, the state minister's remarks painted a clear picture of a shift in the government's health policy — moving away from a race to increase the number of hospitals and towards advancing prevention, grassroots care, technology and district-based specialised treatment together. How quickly these announcements are implemented on the ground is now the most important question for patients.