Minister: Hospitals, doctors must take responsibility if mishaps take place

Health Minister Dr Samanta Lal Sen has said if an accident occurs during surgeries, hospital authorities and doctors will have to take responsibility.

“No hospital can operate without complying with conditions,” the minister said after a meeting with the authorities of Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH) on Monday.

Dr Samanta Lal Sen said: "I am very happy coming to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital. Compared to other medical colleges, this college seems much cleaner and more organized to me. What I am saying is if we can not provide medical services to the local population, the pressure on medical colleges will never decrease.

"Medical colleges do not only provide medical services; they provide education, healthcare, and research. Therefore, we will work on the development of district hospitals. In Rajshahi, there is a district hospital that is beautiful but underutilized. We will make this hospital operational. This will help reduce the pressure on medical colleges. Hopefully, we can find solutions to these issues. There is a shortage of some manpower, and we will address those too.”

An ICU (Intensive Care Unit) was inaugurated today (Monday), which will be helpful for people. Such initiatives will continue in hospitals, he said.

“The cause of death of the two children who died of unknown diseases in Rajshahi was not known. The recent death of children during circumcision is being investigated. The health sector will be fixed from the upazila and district levels,” the minister said.

“Any form of negligence by healthcare providers in medical services will not be tolerated. Additionally, the families of patients behaving aggressively or vandalizing hospitals over simple matters will also not be acceptable,” he told reporters earlier on Sunday night.