Lack of coordination keeps patients in wait
Due to a lack of information and coordination, a person on an average starts taking rehabilitative healthcare services around 880 days after they first suffer from health complications, according to preliminary results of a study.
The study also found that absence of “formal referral system” among health and rehabilitation professionals costs a patient heavily, before starting to receive rehabilitation service.
National Disability Foundation and Handicap International-Humanity & Inclusion, Bangladesh (HI) conducted the study, titled “Coordination of care between Health and Rehabilitation Services in Bangladesh” between January and November 2018.
Golam Mostofa, project manager of HI Bangladesh, yesterday disclosed the outcome of the study at a roundtable on “Role of Professionals and Organisations in Inclusive Health Service and Rehabilitation”.
Bangla daily Prothom Alo organised the roundtable at its Dhaka office.
“Based on data from 396 respondents in six districts, we found that rehabilitation service receivers took a long time to come for the service, and they didn't get information from any formal channel,” Golam Mostofa told The Daily Star.
According to the study, health professionals also have a lack of knowledge about rehabilitation services, including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, psychotherapy, speech and language therapy and prosthetics and orthotics.
Referring to another study, Golam Mostofa said some 60 percent patients in Kurigram district and 28 percent in Narsingdi are deprived of healthcare; the numbers are 83 percent and 47 percent respectively, when it comes to rehabilitation services.
In this case, a lack of proper arrangements and relevant information were the biggest obstacles, according to the study.
Moderated by Abdul Quayum, associate editor of Prothom Alo, rehabilitation professionals and high-ups from government and non-government organisations discussed the obstacles in ensuring inclusive health services in the country.
Speaking as the chief guest, Golam Rabbani, chairman of Neuro-Developmental Disability Protection Trust, informed that some 103 government service centers for disability-related issues were not included with the mainstream health centres, due to “unknown reasons”.
“We have relevant acts as well as arrangements, but there is a gap in coordination. All of us have to be vocal about it,” he added.
Valerie A Taylor, founder of Center for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP), said professionals and students in rehabilitative healthcare feel that they are not being properly recognised in government hospitals.
Kamal Uddin Ahamed Chowdhury, an associate professor of Dhaka University, said, “People are being emotionally disabled nowadays. Counseling from family, friends and teachers are more important than counseling from professionals.”
Sheikh Hameem Hossain, director of National Disability Development Foundation (NDDF); Razib Hossain, deputy director of NDDF; Majedul Haque, country operational coordinator of HI Bangladesh; SM Farhan Bin Hossain, clinical occupational therapist of CRP-Mirpur; Debesh das and Shafiqul Islam apoke at the programme among others.
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