A roundtable meeting titled “The Role of the Private Sector in Tuberculosis Treatment” in Rajshahi raised concerns about tuberculosis patients who remain undiagnosed. It was noted that healthcare services do not reach various groups in society, including the elite, the extremely poor, and those living in remote areas such as chars, as well as individuals working in prisons and factories.
Some people hide their condition, while others remain outside the healthcare system, continuously spreading tuberculosis bacteria to others. The discussion emphasised that while media and social media awareness campaigns are crucial, the economic livelihood of the poor must also be addressed.
This meeting, co-organised by the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr'b) and Prothom Alo, with the support of the Stop TB Partnership, took place on October 19 at a restaurant in Rajshahi city. Physicians and experts from both public and private sectors attended. The session was moderated by Prothom Alo’s assistant editor, Firoz Choudhury.
At the beginning of the meeting, Dr Adel Sikder, senior research investigator at icddr'b, presented the concept paper. In the concluding remarks, Dr Aung Kya Jai, chief of party at icddr'b, expressed gratitude.
Honored guests included Anwarul Kabir, director of health for the Rajshahi division, Dr Zahirul Haque, vice principal of Rajshahi Medical College, Md Saiful Islam, Tuberculosis specialist of the National Tuberculosis Control Program (NTP) for Rajshahi division, Prof Samir Majumder from Barind Medical College Hospital, Md Abdus Salam, registrar of Rajshahi Medical University, Associate Professor Dr Kazi Shusmin Afsana from Rajshahi University, Khadijatul Kobra, monitoring and evaluation officer for Tilottama in Rajshahi, Md Saiful Islam, division manager of BRAC in Rajshahi, and Masud Rana, officer of the Ibn Sina Trust’s Rajshahi corporate branch.
Media representatives included Akbarul Hasan Millat, editor of Daily Sonar Desh, and Ahsan Habib Apu, editor of Daily Rajshahi Sangbad.