Rangpur community clinics served 22 lakh people in 2018
Around 22 lakh people are receiving health services with free-of-cost medicines for common ailments at 309 community clinics in Rangpur annually, earning the confidence of rural people in the district.
Aside from providing treatment and medicine, Community Skilled Birth Attendants (CSBAs) conducted safe deliveries of over 600 pregnant mothers at 48 community clinics of the district till last year.
Civil Surgeon of Rangpur Dr Abu Md Zakirul Islam said a trained Community health care provider (CHCP), a health assistant and a family welfare assistant, all of them trained CSBAs, are working at each community clinic.
The clinics are also providing services on maternal and neonatal healthcare, childhood illness, reproductive health, family planning, health and nutritional education, micro-nutrient supplements and establishing referral linkage with higher facilities.
“The CHCPs are referring children with special needs to Rangpur Medical College Hospital for specialised treatment,” Dr Islam added.
The community clinics provided treatment and medicine to around 22 lakh people including under-five babies, children, adolescents, men and women in 2018 in the district.
“In 2018, over 1.61 lakh children, 6.77 lakh men and 13.62 lakh women received health services with cost-free medicines at 309 community clinics in the district,” Dr Islam said.
Talking to the news agency, CHCP Shahjada Sarder at Uttarpara Community Clinic in Badarganj upazila said some 18,000 people, including under-five babies, adolescents and pregnant women, received health services and medicine there last year alone.
At Gokulpur Community Clinic in Sadar upazila, CHCP Nazma Khatun said some 12,000 patients received health services and free medicines there on an average every year since 2015.
“Some 40 patients come to the clinic every day for treatment. I have already conducted safe deliveries of 11 pregnant mothers; 42 pregnant women are undergoing regular checkups now,” she said.
“We review previous health conditions of a pregnant woman to give her the right services,” Nazma said while narrating how the maternal and neonatal healthcare services are being provided to rural pregnant women.
Each pregnant woman gets 30 iron tablets, 30 vitamin B-complex tablets and 30 pieces of calcium lactate tablets for one month from the community clinic soon after confirmation of pregnancy.
A pregnant woman comes at least four times to the community clinic for regular checkups, or even more frequently if needed, during her 40-week pregnancy period.
“If any complication is noticed during checkups, the CHCPs refer those women to Upazila Health Complex or nearby government hospitals,” Nazma added.
Kusum, 27, of village Chawrapara and Babita, 25, of Hindu Para village said they recently gave birth to their sons at Gokulpur Community Clinic safely, after undergoing regular checkups.
Housewife Fatema, 30; student Nazma, 15; youth Mohsin, 20; and Aklima, 35, said they received treatments for common ailments and medicines there.
CHCP Nadira Banu at Uttar Mominpur Community Clinic said she conducted 16 safe deliveries apart from providing treatment to over 6,650 people there in the last one year.
Divisional Director (Health) Dr Amal Krishna Saha said the community clinics have won confidence of the rural people by taking necessary health services to their doorsteps, and providing satisfactory health services and medicines free of cost.