Govt to dismantle hospital broker syndicates: Health Minister

Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Husain on Wednesday said the government would permanently dismantle broker syndicates that divert patients from public hospitals to private clinics, while tightening oversight of unethical practices in the healthcare sector.

Speaking at the unveiling of a study titled Addressing Gaps in Bangladesh's Public Health System: A Rapid Facility-Based Assessment of Spending Efficiency to Ensure Universal Health Coverage in the capital, the minister said commission-based patient referrals, unnecessary diagnostic tests and other unethical practices would be brought under strict monitoring.

Sakhawat said physicians would not be allowed to neglect their responsibilities at public hospitals while operating private clinics or referring patients to particular diagnostic centres for personal financial gain.

Highlighting irregularities in public procurement, he said unrealistic eligibility criteria had often been included in tender documents in the past to favour selected individuals or companies by limiting competition.

He also criticised wasteful spending in the health sector, alleging that expensive medical equipment had been procured without the necessary infrastructure or skilled personnel to operate them.

Citing radiotherapy machines as an example, he said some units remained unused because the required facilities had not been prepared before procurement. Similar problems existed with X-ray and other medical equipment in different parts of the country, he added.

On immunisation, the minister said the previous government had failed to procure measles vaccines and conduct nationwide vaccination campaigns in recent years. Since assuming office, the current government has intensified the immunisation programme and brought more than one lakh additional children under vaccine coverage.

He said around 99 percent of children currently infected with measles are unvaccinated, underscoring the need to strengthen routine immunisation.

Sakhawat also announced that the government would not renew the contract of a foreign company providing dialysis services after it expires in November. Instead, the government would procure dialysis machines directly to reduce costs, save foreign currency and make treatment more affordable.

He said 50-bed dialysis centres are being established at every medical college hospital, while each district hospital will have a 10-bed dialysis unit.

The study was jointly conducted by the Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC) and the Health Economics Unit. PPRC Executive Chairman Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman presented the findings, while Health Economics Unit Director General Dr Md Enamul Haque delivered the welcome address.

The assessment covered 22 public healthcare facilities at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels across all eight administrative divisions and reviewed budget implementation, procurement practices and institutional performance for FY2024-25.

According to the findings, the average budget implementation rate among the surveyed institutions was 85 percent, while secondary-level facilities recorded the lowest utilisation rate at 78 percent. Although 94 percent of the institutions had unspent funds at the end of the fiscal year, only 11 percent identified financial mismanagement as a concern.