Speakers at a workshop on Saturday stressed the need for ensuring the availability of anti-hypertensive medicine in all healthcare facilities at the grassroots level to effectively reduce hypertension-related non-communicable diseases and deaths.
With the support of the Global Health Advocacy Incubator, research and advocacy organisation PROGGA organised the virtual workshop titled Hypertension Control in Bangladesh: Progress and Way Forward, attended by 23 journalists working in Rajshahi, Sirajganj and Pabna.
About one in every four adults suffers from hypertension, and it is one of the three major reasons for death and disability in the country, said the PROGGA鈥檚 coordinator Sadia Galiba Prov.
Referring to a WHO鈥檚 report, she said that 2.73 lakh people died of cardiovascular diseases in the country in 2019, of which hypertension alone accounted for 54 per cent of deaths.
PROGGA鈥檚 executive director ABM Zubair said that hypertension was one of the major risk factors for various non-communicable diseases, including the heart, stroke, cancer, kidney, respiratory and diabetes.
Mentioning that the government has taken various initiatives, including the provision to include the medicine for hypertension at upazila health complex and community clinics, he said, 鈥楢t present, free medicine for hypertension is being provided at 142 upazila health complexes, four district sadar hospitals, and 86 community clinics.鈥�
Ensuring the availability of anti-hypertensive medicine in all healthcare facilities, especially in all the community clinics, has now become essential to effectively control the hypertension-related non-communicable diseases and deaths associated with it, he said.
ABM Zubair also pointed out that since community clinics were located at a short distance from residence, providing free anti-hypertension medicine would reduce people鈥檚 travel costs, save their time and encourage them to take hypertension treatment.
PROGGA鈥檚 director Md Shahedul Alam said that as per the World Bank鈥檚 recommendation, at least 15 per cent of the country鈥檚 national budget and 5 per cent of the total GDP should be allocated to health care.
鈥楤ut, only 5 per cent of the country鈥檚 total budget and 0.76 per cent of the total GDP have been allocated to health care in the latest budget for 2023-2024 fiscal year,鈥� he mentioned, adding that the out-of-pocket health expenditure had increased to 69 per cent.
The speakers also urged the government to allocate more funds to health care to reduce the burden of medical expenses on the individual and control the non-communicable diseases.