During a recent visit by BHP Directors, OfP Founder Rabiul Islam organized a community dialogue on health care services in Balagram village. Those attending were mostly elderly men and women with chronic pain from a lifetime of field labour plus chronic illness such as hypertension and diabetes. They told us that when they need medical care, they never use the local services because the staff do not provide good treatment, disrespect them, and demand bribes. Instead, the villagers bypass two nearby towns and go to a private hospital in the divisional capital. Due to cost and distance, however, they often do not complete or renew medication or make follow-up visits (e.g. for physio).
OfP already operates OIST Health Centre, an extremely popular screening clinic where volunteers provide simple tests for people suffering from chronic illness. This recent community dialogue, helped us identify potential services that could be offered by the OIST Health Centre in the future
1. Expanded chronic illness program for e.g. diabetes, heart, respiratory, kidney disease
2. Navigation to assist patients to find appropriate care providers
3. Programs for people with chronic pain
4. Cooling center when air temperature is dangerously high
5. Primary school health and wellness education programs
In the longer term, we hope to supplement the volunteers staffing the health centre by training and hiring local youth as health care workers. As funds permit, we will develop these ideas into programs to serve this vulnerable population. We welcome your financial support for our health care programs.
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