Dr Edric Baker – An Unsung Hero
It is with deep reverence that we acknowledge the noble contributions of Dr Edric Baker who passed away on Tuesday, September 1. A New Zealander, who came to Bangladesh in 1979, working mainly to give healthcare to the poor, Dr Baker set up the Kailakuri Health Care Centre in Tangail for the underprivileged in the area. At the Centre, he provided treatment and medicine at a nominal cost, sometimes even for free. Many of his patients were from the most deprived sections of the community. Fluent in Bangla, his selflessness and generosity touched the hearts of many, evident from the outpouring of grief by hundreds at his funeral.
In a country where healthcare is inaccessible to most of the citizens, Dr Edric Baker, popularly known as Daktar Bhai, is an example that we hope will be emulated. Instead of pursuing a lucrative career in his own country, he chose to serve humanity with the skills he had acquired as a doctor.
For the poor and helpless he was a Godsend, a ray of hope. His dream, as expressed by an interview in this newspaper in 2001, was to find a successor to run the clinic with the same dedication as he had for so many years. Unfortunately, that has not happened despite the hundreds of MBBS graduates we get each year.
We are eternally grateful to this noble soul for his gift of love to our needy brothers and sisters. His work and altruism should be an inspiration to other doctors of this country to dedicate some of their time to taking care of the sick and the poor. His work at the Kailakuri Health Centre must be carried forward.
Comments