Even though it is very essential for locals that the government owned Fatehpur Union Health Centre in Tangail’s Mirzapur upazila provides affordable medical care and basic medicine supplies, the medical centre lacks a certified doctor and mandatory medicine supplies.
According to the hospital guidelines, the health centre was supposed to be manned by an MBBS doctor, a pharmacist, a community medical officer (trained by the government) and a Member of Lower Subordinate Staff (MLSS).
However, locals said Shamima Hossain, the hired MBBS doctor who is expected to tend to patients at the health centre had not bothered to respond to her call of duty for the past one and half years.
Upazila Health and Family Planning Officer Dr Shamim Ahmed said: "Shamima Hossain was appointed to the Mirzapur Upazila Health Complex, long before I had joined. After an order by the civil surgeon, she was also given the responsibility of the health centre, unfortunately she is irregular at both of her workplaces."
Sources said Pharmacist Abdul Kader and Community Medical Officer Shubhash Chandra Tantri are the general practitioners of the health centre and the MLSS post has been vacant for a long time. Locals said that the pharmacist is unavailable most of the time as he works on deputation.
Ibrahim Sikdar, a store-keeper of the Fatehpur market, said patients had to cover high costs of private hospitals, as there were no certified doctors at the health centre to diagnose critical medical conditions.
Joynal Mia, Fatehpur Union Parishad member, said: "The Fatehpur health centre is in dire straits. There is no MBBS doctor for 1.5 years. Those who were appointed are working somewhere else. Locals are deprived of government health care and essential medicines."
In 1960, the health centre was formerly known as Charitable Dispensary at Fatehpur market where the locals received free medicines and affordable medical care. Soon after the 1971 Independence War it came under the jurisdiction of the Bangladesh government.
