School health centre hardly serves its purpose
The government-run school health centre at Sarkerpara in Saidpur municipality under the district, meant for providing medical treatment for school students, virtually fails to serve its purpose.
The then government in early 80s set up this school health centre, to be manned with two doctors, a pharmacist and an MLSS, sources said.
One doctor is now providing treatment there while the other post of doctor, supposed to visit schools to teach students about health rules and motivating them to visit the centre for treatment, is lying vacant for years.
Only 10-12 students visit the health centre daily as most are not aware about it due to lack of motivation programme, said Dr Sharmin Aktar, the only physician now serving the centre.
Locals said the physician lives in Rangpur city and she often fail to maintain regularity due to adverse weather, transportation problem etc.
Upazila education office sources said around 35 thousand students study in 77 primary schools, 28 high schools and 20 madrasas in the upazila.
Visiting the centre at 12:15pm on Thursday, three students were found to have come there for treatment that time.
One of them, Minhaj, a Class V student of Sunflower School, said he went there with cough and fever as he lives nearby.
Class X students of Islamia High School in Saidpur municipality, Sohag, Jibon and Nawshad, said they never heard about the school health centre.
Service time of the health centre, 9:00am to 5:00pm, is not suitable for students' visit there as the time coincides with school hours, said Anwarul Islam, headmaster of Saidpur Pilot High School.
Pharmacist Nazrul Islam of the centre said district civil surgeon's office provides sufficient medicines every year but a good quantity of them remains unused for want of patients.
Contacted, Civil Surgeon Dr Abdur Rashid said, “The school health centre at Saidpur is not running properly due to different reasons and I have brought the matter to the knowledge of the higher authorities a number of times.”
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