Ensure renewal of doctors' registration

Treatment is an extremely sensitive service. The term "business" is not associated with healthcare; rather, it is universally recognized as a service. However, in the context of Bangladesh, it is observed that many have treated healthcare as a business and have not hesitated to engage in corruption and malpractice to expand their business. There have been instances of fraud in the name of healthcare. Some have provided medical treatment without being qualified doctors, and there are cases where people have died due to wrong treatment.

According to the law, such individuals cannot even be brought to justice, as these unqualified practitioners are often impossible to trace. This is why the registration of doctors and the renewal of their registration after a specific period are crucial. According to the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council Act, 2010, no one can provide medical services in the country without a valid registration certificate from the BMDC. Unfortunately, a large number of doctors in Bangladesh do not renew their registrations. As a result, identifying fake doctors becomes increasingly difficult.

According to media reports, it has been revealed through information from the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council (BMDC) that nearly 36,000 doctors are practicing their profession in the country without renewing their registrations. The BMDC does not have accurate data on how many individuals have submitted fake documents for registration. Additionally, they are unaware of how many people are working as doctors without any registration.

The Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council (BMDC) is the regulatory body for the medical profession in the country. This institution grants permission or registration to doctors to practice medicine. The very regulatory body responsible for overseeing the medical profession admits that, in addition to unregistered clinics and hospitals, there are numerous fake doctors operating in the country. Identifying and punishing these individuals is a challenging task. However, the BMDC claims that anyone can verify the authenticity of a doctor's qualifications by visiting their website.

But how many people in Bangladesh actually verify the qualifications of doctors? When a doctor is available nearby, people rush to them to save lives, but in the process, fake doctors are playing games with people's lives. It is the responsibility of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) to ensure that such malpractice is curbed. They cannot shy away from this responsibility. We urge the Ministry of Health to be more proactive in ensuring the registration and renewal of doctors' licenses.

It is reported that many doctors fail to renew their registrations on time due to various distractions or laziness. Since the BMDC does not enforce strict reminders or penalties, doctors often do not consider it a priority. However, this lack of urgency from the regulatory body creates opportunities for opportunistic fraudsters. Fake doctors and scammers exploit this loophole whenever possible.

In addition to issuing doctors' registrations, the BMDC is also responsible for approving medical education institutions. Several journalists, citing specific information, have reported that the quality of some private medical colleges is substandard. These colleges continue to admit students every year through deceitful means. The owners of private medical colleges are even trying to abolish the automated MBBS admission process to bypass regulations and increase student intake.

BMDC officials report that there are 134,568 registered doctors, 14,323 dentists, and 29,018 medical assistants in the country. Of these, 36,000 doctors have not renewed their registration. A significant portion of these doctors are senior practitioners. To address this irregularity, strict intervention from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) is essential. We call on the government to become more vigilant on this issue. Through the enforcement of necessary laws, the government should work to eliminate the current chaos in the healthcare sector.