RAJSHAHI, June 21, 2018 (BSS)-Tarjina Begum, 25, is now happy as she has
been blessed with a healthy baby after availing all requisite antenatal care
(ANC) and postnatal care (PNC) from a nearby community clinic (CC).
Begum, wife of Sabur Ali of Bamandighi village under Charghat upazila, took
all the four-phase ANC and three-phase PNC from Bamandighi CC timely and
accurately.
“I got the opportunity of taking the essential services with advantage of
the CC. It was not possible for us to go to any upazila or district level
hospital repeatedly due to our financial hardship,” she said while talking to
BSS.
She terms the Bamandighi CC as vital means for regular medical checkup.
After getting her doorstep services she’s mentally satisfied.
Not only Begum but also many other poor and disadvantaged people including
pregnant mothers are getting primary healthcare services from the CC, 10
kilometers off the Upazila Health Complex.
From the CC level health education sessions, the grassroots mothers are
becoming aware about the importance of regular checkup of pregnant mothers
for safe delivery.
Tarjina Begum expressed her gratitude to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for
her initiative of re-launching the CC.
While visiting the Bamandighi CC recently, this correspondent found that
some patients were taking health services from community healthcare provider
(CHCP).
CHCP Helal Uddin said every day we give health services to around 35
patients, including pregnant women and children.
Helal urged the authorities concerned to provide more medicine free of cost
as most of the low-income people cannot afford medicine.
“People are getting health education, referral advice, pregnancy checkup,
reproductive health services, de-warming and vaccination at the clinics that
brought healthcare services to their doorsteps,” said Rajshahi Civil Surgeon
Dr. Samjit Kumar Shaha.
He mentioned that the CCs are being made capable for normal delivery
through imparting training to the family welfare assistants and visitors
besides supplying necessary instruments.
The CCs are functioning with the main thrust of elevating the essential
services besides enhancing knowledge level about health and disease control
among the community people as a whole.
Dr Anisur Rahman, Divisional Director of Health, said there are 1936
functional CCs in Rajshahi division. Around 1.58 crore patients including
1.11 crore women and 13.75 lakh babies and infants were provided with
healthcare services from the CCs in 2017.
The CCs also referred 1.53 lakh patients including 92,373 women to
secondary and tertiary hospitals for better services. For the sake of safe
delivery, the CCs provided four-phase ANC to around 3.13 lakh pregnant
mothers while 74,038 mothers got three-stage PNC. That’s why maternal and
infant mortality were reduced significantly, Dr Anis informed.
“We mainly provide five health services to people. These are: family
planning, EPI, nutrition, primary healthcare and health education,” Dr Anis
mentioned.
Hasanuzzaman Madhu, chairman of Sardaha Union Parishad, said many of his
area people are getting physicians’ advice, health services and necessary
medicines from the clinics without hassle and paying higher prices.
The existing CCs have attained trust of the grassroots people including
poor and merginalised as they are getting requisite primary healthcare
services regularly at their doorsteps in the region, added the public
representative.