Sheikh Hasina's treatment
The four specialist professors have every right to give opinion as to the medical condition of their patient. It, however, is pretty odd for physicians to suggest a definite country for the purpose of treatment. As I can gather from the newspapers reports, Sheikh Hasina is suffering from multiple disease processes including hypertension, eye problem (not specified in the news report) and hearing problem. It is also suggested that she might be suffering from kidney problems too.
I am not a specialist professor, but I understand a lot of those medical jargons. Let's look into the problems one by one:
Hypertension: Treatment of hypertension, its possible causes (if secondary to other primary process) and complications of hypertension does not require a trip to America. If the good professors cannot treat those issues, they can refer to other doctors who can diagnose and treat appropriately. Bangladesh, currently have a few world-class hospitals with good caring physicians who will be able to manage those problems extremely well.
Eye and ear Problems: The learned professor did not clearly talk about the nature of her eye problems. So, I have no comment. And it is obvious that she needs a hearing device and that should be provided by the government along with proper maintenance. I just cannot believe that hospitals like Apollo or Square cannot provide those services. If such service is not really available, it can be obtained from India at a reasonable cost.
Kidney problem: Well, they should consult a nephrologist (a kidney specialist) in Dhaka. A number of good kidney doctors with proper ancillary support are there.
The Honourable ex-PM is no longer a free citizen. However, her well-being and appropriate medical care is a responsibility of the government. But the government should be mindful of the fact that medical care in the US is painfully expensive.
At last, I would like to tell the learned professors that sending a patient to the US is no simple task. Are they willing to suggest the same to hundreds of other Bangladeshi patients who are suffering from similar ailments?
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments