MEDICARE sector of Bangladesh is yet to be developed as we see thousands of patients going abroad particularly to India for better treatment. We see foreign hospitals erecting attractive billboards and publishing colourful advertisements in newspapers to attract Bangladeshi patients to seek medical treatment at their hospitals.
India is mostly preferred by the locals because of its proximity and relatively lower expenses. There are better off people who prefer to go to Thailand, Singapore, and the USA for medical treatment.
In the backdrop of increasing number of patients rushing out of the country for improved medical treatment, the Health Ministry has a big role to play. It should take necessary initiatives to bring about qualitative change to public hospitals and clinics in the country by upgrading their existing equipments and facilities and bringing in state-of-the-art technology. In this way, the medicare industry will flourish and if sophisticated and modern treatment is made available, people will feel discouraged to go abroad for medical treatment. We can also save a lot of foreign exchange in this way. It is high time that we should have medicare facilities of global standard so that our people are able to avail much improved medical facilities at home instead of going abroad.
Mohammed Fahim
Moghbazar, Dhaka
