Photo: BSS

JHALAKATHI, Mar 24, 2026 (BSS) - Dr Ziauddin Haider, member of the BNP Chairperson's Advisory Council and Chief of the BNP Grassroots Network, has expressed his commitment to bringing healthcare services directly to people's homes to ensure accessible and quality medical treatment for every citizen.

"Establishing a robust health system at the union level would allow most diseases to be treated at the primary stage, significantly reducing the pressure on district-level hospitals," he said.

Dr Ziauddin made the remarks while talking to journalists after inspecting the Jhalakathi Sadar Hospital.

"Our goal is clear - to deliver healthcare to the doorsteps of every individual," he said, adding that the initiative aims to ensure no person is forced to travel long distances for basic medical care.

Outlining the decentralization plan, he said an integrated health unit will be established in every union, staffed by a physician, a diploma-holding sub-assistant, a midwife, a nurse, a lab technician, and a pharmacist.

He also mentioned that separate hubs will be created to focus on health awareness and disease prevention. Under this system, patients will be referred to upazila or district health complexes only if their condition cannot be treated at the union level, allowing larger hospitals to focus on complex and critical cases.

Dr Ziauddin further said community health workers will be brought under an integrated framework to provide home-based medical services. This approach is expected to strengthen preventive healthcare and facilitate early disease detection.

He also noted that government hospitals remain the primary reliance for the general public. Therefore, he stressed the need to improve service quality by coordinating manpower, infrastructure, and modern equipment.

During his visit to Jhalakathi Sadar Hospital, Dr Ziauddin toured the emergency department, women and children's ward, and medicine and surgery departments. He interacted with admitted patients to gather feedback on service quality, medicine supply, diagnostic facilities, and overall hospital environment.

While patients and their relatives praised the sincerity of doctors, they highlighted critical issues such as acute shortage of beds, scarcity of essential medicines, inadequate room space, and cleanliness problems.

Following the inspection, Dr Ziauddin held a meeting with hospital officials to discuss manpower shortages and infrastructural limitations. 

He urged the authorities to take necessary steps to enhance service quality.