Law Adviser Asif Nazrul on Saturday urged private hospital doctors to stop burdening patients with unnecessary diagnostic tests.
Speaking as the chief guest at an event organised by the Bangladesh Private Hospital, Clinic and Diagnostic Owners Association (BPHCDOA) at the Shaheed Abu Saeed International Convention Centre on Minto Road in Dhaka.
Appreciating the quality of healthcare services and competence of doctors in Bangladesh, the adviser said, "Many people still travel to India or Thailand for treatment…. The patients [in Bangladesh] are forced to buy medicines from specific drugmakers, which is unacceptable."
The law adviser further said, "In which country in the world do doctors allocate separate time for pharmaceutical representatives? So why are you doing this? Why are you turning yourselves into agents of pharmaceutical companies? Please stop this act. The people of Bangladesh are very poor. Even if you take more from the rich, don't exploit the common people."
Further sharing a personal experience, he said that one of his house-helps had to undergo 14 tests at a private hospital in Dhaka for treatment. Later, helplessly, he went outside Dhaka, where such extensive tests were not required.
The adviser then said nurses were underpaid, urging hospital owners to ensure fair wages for their employees.
"If a nurse gets a monthly salary of Tk 12,000, how can they provide good service? How can they show kindness to the patients? Hospital owners should ensure fair salaries to their employees, thinking less of making profits."
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