IT’S very disturbing information that Dhaka’s hospitals do not comply with the Tobacco Control Act. A recent study conducted by National Heart Foundation Bangladesh in April, 2019 found that tobacco is used in most of the hospitals while the `Smoking Free Area’ stickers are also absent. The findings of the survey were disclosed at a press conference at National Press Club on Monday. The study was conducted on 51 hospitals. Of them, 49 were public and two private run establishments. It was seen that people were smoking at 71 per cent of the hospitals, including their premises, in-door and outdoor departments, staircases, balconies as well as at the points of entries and exits. Not only that, evidence of smokeless tobacco use were found at 65 per cent hospitals as people were seen chewing tobacco with betel leaf spitting here and there inside the hospitals.
When most of the hospitals don’t have the stickers on the walls; the study also found that eight per cent of the hospital administrations did not even know about the stipulations in the Tobacco Control Act. Besides, 53 per cent did not know about the guidelines for the hospitals to follow the law. As a result, tobacco products were found selling on the compounds of 13.7 per cent of the hospitals, tobacco vendors were found on the compounds of 11 per cent of the hospitals and tobacco shops were found within 100 meters of 80 per cent of the hospitals. Only six per cent hospitals were fully compliant with the Tobacco Control Act. The latest study undoubtedly has focused on the dark side of our health services.
Usually, most of the city hospitals are careless about maintaining any standard for healthy treatment. In the rest of the country the situation is abominable and unhygienic. There is no authority to supervise. The health ministry exists in name. We are doing our duty by pointing out the negligence but we also know nobody pays any heed. There will not be any improvement.
