-Govt Pathologist specialist’s name is used in diagnostic centers without permission
-No doctor is available in any diagnostic center in Satkhira
-149 clinics and diagnostic in 6 UZ not applied for license renewal
- Only 5 orgs applied for license renewal
258 clinics and diagnostic centers are running in 7 upazilas of Satkhira district. Although a large number of these health care institutions are running in this small district from remote areas to cities, the district health department says that the license of one clinic and diagnostic center has not been renewed in the current financial year 2024-25. That is, all the health care institutions that are running are illegal. The district health department sent a list to the district administration office to take action against these institutions, but the concerned department did not take the initiative to take action. As a result, the government is deprived of at least several crore of revenue as these illegal health care institutions are running under illegal way.
The District Health Department said that the number of clinics and diagnostics in Satkhira Sadar Upazila is currently 109. Among them, 43 are clinics or private hospitals and 66 diagnostic centers. Although the current fiscal year 2024-25 has been running for 5 months, only 5 organizations have applied for license renewal among 109 clinics and diagnostic centers in Sadar Upazila. Among these 5 institutions are Nabojiban Diagnostic Center, Satkhira Green Life Hospital and Diagnostic Center, Satkhira City Hospital and Diagnostic Center. The remaining 104 clinics and diagnostic center owners of Sadar Upazila did not apply for license renewal in the current financial year. That is why these illegal institutions are not investigated even if they are nominally supervised from time to time.
However, while 5 health service institutions under Sadar Upazila have applied for license renewal, the owners of 149 clinics and diagnostic centers in the remaining 6 upazilas of the district have not applied for license renewal in the current financial year. Among them, Debhata Upazila has 7 clinics and 4 diagnostic centers totaling 11. Tala upazila has 9 clinics and 8 diagnostic centers totaling 17. In Shyamnagar upazila there are 20 clinics and 20 diagnostic centers total 40. There are 7 clinics and 6 diagnostic centers in Asashuni upazila, totaling 13. Kalaroa upazila has 20 clinics and 13 diagnostic centers totaling 33 and Kaliganj upazila has 16 clinics and 15 diagnostic centers totaling 31.
According to the responsible sources of the district health department, for every 10-bed clinic or hospital, 3 MBBS doctors and 6 professional nurses must be kept every 8 hours i.e. 24 hours a day. No 10-bed hospital in Satkhira has 3 doctors and 6 nurses anywhere. Even a doctor and a nurse are on duty at a number of clinics.
All other clinics and diagnostic centers run entirely on air without on-call doctors and nurses. But there is a hospital of 60 to 70 beds in this city. Bed-wise manpower requirement in those places without fulfilling the minimum category is going on without any hindrance. At the same time, a diagnostic center should have a pathologist and a diploma pathologist. In that regard, no such doctor is available in any diagnostic center in Satkhira. He said that the name of a pathologist specialist in a government hospital is used by the owners of all diagnostic centers. But in order to employ a government expert pathologist in any institution or to use their name, permission is needed from the concerned department. No one has that either.
Meanwhile, Saiful Islam, office assistant of the Satkhira Civil Surgeon Office, said that the Islami Bank Community Hospital located at Narikeltala intersection in Satkhira town has previously received approval for 70 beds, CB Hospital in the same area has 100 beds, Sangram Hospital has 30 beds, Anwara Memorial Clinic has 20 beds, Dr Mahatab Uddin Hospital has 10 beds. Currently the largest hospital Heart Foundation Clinic also took approval earlier with only 10 beds. Saiful Islam also said that we have already informed the Heart Foundation Hospital authorities that the huge building and other parts including beds are more. In that case they were asked to apply for approval of 30 to 50 beds but they did not do so. It should be noted that if the number of beds is higher, the government's revenue will be higher; sources claim that clinic owners manipulate these. It has been seen on the surface, small institutions do not feel the need to keep all that manpower after showing the manpower of 10 beds and getting approval for 10 beds.
They panicked after getting approval only by showing temporarily hired manpower during the Health Department's investigation. And the manpower status of big health care institutions is not worth mentioning. Hospitals with 60-70 or 100 beds are running with 10 or 20 beds. As a result, in the name of providing medical treatment, the pockets of the people are being cut, but there is also failure in providing services. Even though these irregularities have been going on for years, the district health department has failed to take action. On the other hand, using muscle power and local power, clinic or diagnostic center owners are often evading government revenue.
However, Kamruzzaman Russell, the general secretary in charge of Satkhira district of Bangladesh Clinic and Diagnostic Owners Association, spoke about the ongoing status of the district's health system and license renewal. He said, earlier there was a lot of complications regarding license renewal of clinics and diagnostics in the district. The previous government forced us to get approval for narcotics. We have spoken to the Center about that. If we don't use that kind of medicine then why take certification.
Our central committee is working on the matter at the head office of the health department. At the same time there was a complication with the environmental clearance. We have earmarked a site at chayghariya to destroy clinical waste. We will move towards the license once the operations start there very soon. On the other hand, I don't know that people express surprise when they hear the approval of 10 beds in huge hospitals. If someone did, they certainly didn't fix it.
In this regard we talked with Dr Abdus Salam, officer of the Bangladesh Clinic and Diagnostic Owners Association. The licenses of 258 clinics and diagnostic centers in 7 upazilas of the district have not been renewed in the current financial year (2024-25). Why not? In response to such a question, he said, come to the office and sit and talk, not everything can be said on the telephone.
ZH
