Experts panel formed for health sector reforms
The health ministry has formed a 12-member experts panel for essential reforms in the national health system, enhancing the quality of medical services, and strengthening the overall structure of the health sector.
The Government Health Management-1 Branch of the Health Services Division on 3 September issued a notification in this regard.
The panel – consisting Prof Dr MA Faiz, former director general of the Directorate General of Health Services, as President, and Prof Abdullah Shafi Majumder, former director of the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), as Member Secretary – will advise the government on necessary reforms to the country’s existing health system.
Additionally, they will focus on improving the quality of medical services.
Other members of the panel are Bangladesh Diabetic Association President Prof Dr AK Azad Khan, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Sayedur Rahman, former Director of Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) Prof Dr Mahmudur Rahman, Senior Obstetrics and Gynecologist Professor Dr Ferdowsi Begum, Former Professor of Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital Dr Feroze Quader, Former Additional Director General (Planning and Development) of the Department of Health Professor Dr Sania Tahmina, Dhaka Community Medical College Hospital Professor Dr Shakil Ahmad, CEO of Injury Prevention and Research Center Prof Dr Fazlur Rahman, Former Head of Medicine Department of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Professor Dr MA Jalil Chowdhury, Professor of MH Samorita Medical College Dr Sarkar Mahbub Ahmad Shamim.
The experts panel’s terms of reference include developing and implementing thematic reforms within the national health system to enhance its effectiveness; establishing standards for world-class medical education across all levels and guiding modernising higher education institutions; improving health systems to ensure high-quality care in urban, rural, and remote areas; advising the government on policy and structural reforms to optimise the use of manpower and equipment in health centres by strengthening the overall health system; recommending reforms to enhance and strengthen the regulatory frameworks of key medical educational institutions such as Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council, Bangladesh Medical Research Council, Bangladesh Nursing and Midwifery Council.
