Healthcare for all: A dream or an achievable reality? 

Our land has more than 170 million citizens; it has achieved significant healthcare progress over the last forty years. The country strongly supports public health advancement by successfully reducing maternal and child death rates and creating community health facilities across rural areas.

This nation must answer whether it can implement universal healthcare (UHC) and deliver healthcare for all policies to all citizens. The possibility of achieving this healthcare dream remains uncertain, while the reality appears distant.

The current state of healthcare in our country

Here, healthcare delivery takes place through combined public and private service operations. Hospital facilities, upazila health complexes, union sub-centres, and community clinics form the government-provided healthcare system. 

Still, the private sector serves around 80% of patients seeking medical services. Despite efforts to address them, significant hurdles continue to impact the system.

Medical expenses borne by healthcare visitors amount to 64-67% of costs, whereas international standards permit only 32%, more than the internationally recognised figure. The total number of hospital beds per person is 1:1677, and the doctor density is 0.8 per 1000 people, while the World Health Organization recommends at least 4.45 doctors for the same population group.

Healthcare professionals and medical facilities remain extremely scarce in rural areas of this land. The combination of monetary problems together with social beliefs, and insufficient women healthcare providers block women from getting access to care.

In this regard, MD Tanzim Hossain Rizon, a fifth-year (MBBS) Sir Salimullah Medical College and Hospital Mitford student, says,

"The country can enhance healthcare accessibility and lower death rates by improving communication channels and raising awareness while efficiently utilising its resources to bring in modern facilities and expert personnel."

Achievements worth celebrating

Despite the severe healthcare challenges, we have also achieved several significant developments. The Community Clinics Model operates approximately 13000 health service centres nationwide to provide rural people with primary healthcare needs.

The clinics operate as facilities that enhance maternal care procedures and family planning support, as well as treating regular childhood infections, such as respiratory diseases and gastrointestinal issues. 

The WHO-led Health and Gender Support Project in Cox's Bazar advanced diagnostic capability in tuberculosis and non-communicable diseases by installing new diagnostic tools, training thousands of health workers, and improving drug accessibility.

Challenges on the road to universal healthcare

Multiple challenges exist toward achieving universal healthcare benefits in this nation. Healthcare receives inadequate funding from the government as government spending amounts to 4.04% while public expenses continue to decline, thus limiting resources available for healthcare expansion.

Professorial staff shortages affect rural healthcare because training institutions are scarce. Government health facilities face staffing vacancies because they lack resources for hiring new staff members. Steps Toward Achieving Healthcare for All

The achievement of universal healthcare requires Bangladesh to handle several important matters. 

Step 1: The national healthcare budget needs higher financial investment to cut direct payments while improving healthcare facilities.

Step 2: The country needs to enhance its primary healthcare systems by expanding the number of community clinics to establish equal basic service access in all underprivileged areas.

Step 3: Telemedicine combined with digital health solutions helps connect service areas among distant regions.

Step 4: Rural healthcare improvement requires additional resources allocated to medical training while providing incentives to medical professionals to provide services in underserved regions.

Step 5: The government should form alliances with private entities through public-private partnerships to provide better services at affordable costs.

The health indicator improvements in Bangladesh over the last ten years demonstrate that universal health coverage remains an achievable goal. Through community clinic initiatives, the government is dedicated to making primary healthcare equally accessible for all people.

The UN resolution that validates Bangladesh's community clinic model shows that the country leads the world in delivering affordable healthcare services.

The medical treatment framework for every citizen serves as both a realistic vision and a workable answer because of the strong determination toward significant nationwide changes.

Bangladesh can establish universal health coverage through increased financial support, enhanced primary care infrastructure and technological utilisation and improved cooperation between government agencies and private medical organisations.

Every nation's individual will eventually experience a healthier future through the ongoing challenging healthcare transformation.

Universal success demands coordinated action by government officials, healthcare sector professionals, foreign partners, and population members. We can achieve this ambition through determined action and strategic planning while demonstrating excellence as an example for other nations.

Samiha Mamun is an undergraduate student at the Army Institute of Business Administration (Army IBA), affiliated with the Bangladesh University of Professionals in Savar, Dhaka. She can be reached at samihamamunmeem@gmail.com