Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University has expanded its evening specialists’ consultation services in the hospital with the addition of surgery and orthopaedic surgery departments in the service from Tuesday.
Professors and associate professors of the eye and gastroenterology departments started seeing patients as part of the ongoing evening specialists’ consultation services at the two departments, said the BSMMU officials.
The university started evening services on October 1, 2011, first of its kind in the country, with professors and associate professors of seven departments – Medicine, Paediatricts, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Skin and Venereal Diseases, Ear, Nose and Throat, Cardiology, and Physical Medicine – attending patients everyday from 3pm to 6pm.
At present specialised consultancy services are run at 19 departments including the new two departments.
The other departments are rheumatology (Tuesday and Thursday), endocrinology (Tuesday), chest disease department (Saturday and Tuesday), eye, gastroenterology, nephrology, urology, neuro-medicine, liver and psychology departments.
The service offers specialists’ prescription only for Tk 200, which is otherwise Tk 500 to Tk 700 in private chambers.
The university vice-chancellor Pran Gopal Datta earlier said they start the service to reach specialised health care to the poor patients at low cost.
However, the health rights activists said at evening outdoor, the hospital authorities are now allowed to charge more than the usual fees.
The university charges Tk 30 for its morning outdoor services.