BUHS seeks affordable Cardiac Rehabilitation Model for Bangladesh
Photo: After the programme
Bangladesh University of Health Sciences (BUHS) has called for an affordable and accessible cardiac rehabilitation model to improve recovery services for heart patients across the country.
The call came at a stakeholder meeting on the Affordable Cardiac Rehabilitation: An Outreach Interdisciplinary Strategic Study – Bangladesh Project (ACROSS-BD), held on November 5 at the conference hall of the Super Specialised Hospital of Bangladesh Medical University in Dhaka.
State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr M. A. Muhit attended the meeting as the chief guest. Expressing concern over the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), he said such diseases account for 67 per cent of all deaths in Bangladesh, with cardiovascular diseases among the leading causes.
He assured that the government would provide policy and structural support to implement an internationally recognised, affordable and locally appropriate cardiac rehabilitation model.
Research findings should not remain confined to laboratories or academic journals but should be translated into affordable, accessible and sustainable healthcare services at the grassroots level, he said.
The meeting was chaired by BUHS Vice-Chancellor Professor J. M. A. Hannan.
Professor Rod S. Taylor, Professor of Population Health Research at the University of Glasgow in the United Kingdom, and Professor Imran B. Chowdhury of Ziauddin University Hospital in Pakistan, both co-chief investigators of the ACROSS project, delivered the keynote presentations.
They emphasised the need for an affordable, culturally appropriate and home-based cardiac rehabilitation model for patients recovering from heart disease. The proposed model will also incorporate mental health support.
National Professor Dr A. K. Azad Khan, president of the Bangladesh Diabetic Association (BADAS); Professor Dr Mohammad Shafiuddin, president of the Bangladesh Cardiac Society; and Professor Dr F. M. Siddiqui, vice-chancellor of Bangladesh Medical University, also spoke at the meeting.
They highlighted the importance of multidisciplinary cooperation and an effective rehabilitation system in improving cardiac care in Bangladesh.
The ACROSS-BD project is a five-year international research programme funded by the United Kingdom’s National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
The University of Glasgow and the University of Manchester are leading the project, while BUHS is implementing it in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh Medical University, the National Heart Foundation of Bangladesh and Ibrahim Cardiac Hospital and Research Institute are collaborating as clinical trial centres. Pakistani institutions, including the Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning (PILL), are also involved in the initiative.
The stakeholder meeting aimed to align the project’s objectives with Bangladesh’s national health priorities and strengthen cooperation among healthcare institutions, researchers and policymakers.
