Finance Minister Abul Maal Muhith said that he will bring the importance and urgency of cancer and palliative care to the government’s attention so that the program gets all necessary support from the administration.
He has also expressed hope that the national support, once received, will promote the program nationwide.
He made the remarks during the closing ceremony of International Conference on Cancer and Palliative Care held at the Rose View Hotel in Sylhet on September 11.
The September 6-11 conference was organized by Ayat Education, with the technical support of Harvard Medical School led by Prof Dr Bimalaugshu Dey and his team of healthcare professionals from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston, US.
The programs included multiple tumour boards at various medical institutions, surgeries performed by international experts, dissemination of cancer awareness and the importance and urgency of palliative care.
Experts at the conference had emphasized the necessity of capacity building of the healthcare professionals in Bangladesh through collaborations and knowledge transfer.
The event ended with the call for national collaboration to develop infrastructure for affordable and better cancer and palliative care in every division of the country.
The trainers from MGH also conducted a five-day certification course, which was attended by about 60 nurses from different public and private hospitals in Sylhet Division.
Faculty nurses from MGH and Boston’s Simmons College had offered the training to help build the attendees’ capacity in intensive cancer and palliative care.
The certificates were handed over to the participants by Finance Minister Muhith during the ceremony at Rose View Hotel on September 11.
Dr Bimalangshu Dey and Ayat Education’s Chairman Tahsin Aman and Chief Patron Nusrat Aman were also present as special guests, among others, at the event.
