Government-run health facilities have been lacking monitoring at the local level for nearly five years, as management committees at public hospitals across the country had been inactive over the period.
To solve the issue, the health ministry on December 31 last year issued an emergency notice to all public hospitals to re-activate their Hospital Development Management Committees (HDMC) and asked to be sent the minutes of their monthly meetings .
The HDMCs – comprising ministers, local MPs, hospital chiefs, influential political and social personalities – were originally directed to be formed in April 2009, at all public medical colleges, specialised and district hospitals, and upazila health complexes
However, apart from a few exceptions, most of the HDMCs stayed inactive throughout the tenure of the past government as ministers and lawmakers were not interested to stay present at the committee meetings.
As a result, no success was made in achieving the committees’ main objectives that included identifying the obstacles to health services, ensuring emergency funding, liaison with senior health officials, reporting local demand and ensuring supply.
Several senior officials of the health ministry and the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) told the Dhaka Tribune that the lack of proper management denied patients the proper health facilities, despite the ministry having invested billions of taka in the development of the health sector.
Seeking anonymity, a former district civil surgeon, said the patients received better healthcare when ministers or MPs were active in the HDMCs.
Issues like emergency budgets for ambulance repair, funds for generator fuel and equipment maintenance could be immediately addressed by the HDCMs, instead of having to write to the DGHS and wait for the funds, the former civil surgeon said.
Meanwhile, an investigation by the Dhaka Tribune revealed that the office of the director (hospital and clinic) of the DGHS – which is responsible for monitoring and supervising public and private hospitals, clinics and diagnostic centres – had remained vacant since February 2013.
Since that time, the post has been held by Prof Dr ABM Abdul Hannan, director (medical education) of the DGHS, as an additional duty.
Seeking anonymity, several senior DGHS officials expressed suspicions about the possible reasons behind former health minister AFM Ruhal Hoque’s decision to ignore many capable candidates for the directorial post.
The vacancy of the post was a major reason behind the lack of active monitoring and supervision in public hospitals, they added.
Sources said around 31,000 new personnel including doctors and nurses have been recruited in the health sector over the past five years, in a bid to ensure quality health services, from big hospitals to the grassroots level.
When asked, Dr Shah Newaz, director (administration) of the DGHS, admitted that the HDMC meetings had not been as successful as desired, but added that the HDMCs of several districts had been active and performing very well.
Prof ABM Abdul Hannan, acting director (hospital and clinic) of the DGHS, said the regular meetings of the HDMCs could not be held because of various reasons, but added that initiatives have been taken to make the HDMCs a success following the ministry direction to regularise the meetings.