More than 15 million people in Bangladesh live with heart disease, which causes about a third of all deaths, yet the country has only 3,000 intensive-care beds across public and private hospitals, most of them in Dhaka. Of more than 200 cardiac surgeons, only 15 to 20 work outside the capital. The figures were given by Professor Khandaker Abdul Awal Rizvi, president of the National Heart Foundation of Bangladesh, at a roundtable in Dhaka ahead of World Heart Day.

The roundtable, 'World Heart Day 2026: every heartbeat is life', was held on 21 September at the Prothom Alo office, organised by the National Heart Foundation and Prothom Alo with Incepta Pharmaceuticals as scientific partner. Professor Rizvi said cardiac surgery costs between Tk 2.5 lakh and Tk 4 lakh, and called for lower taxes on treatment and hospitals, incentives for the private sector and health insurance.

Professor Nazmul Hossain, director general of the Directorate General of Medical Education, said cardiovascular disease causes about a third of deaths worldwide and that treatment in Bangladesh is still largely centred on Dhaka. Heart centres are being built at divisional level, he said, but skilled staff are short, especially for children's heart care.

Professor Fazila-Tun-Nesa Malik, secretary general of the foundation, said about 80 per cent of heart disease is preventable. She urged people not to ignore small signs, such as tiring at ordinary chores, slight breathlessness or stopping after two or three stairs, and to keep blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol under control. Professor Md Shafiqul Islam of Dhaka Medical College Hospital's neurosurgery department said heart attack and stroke share many risk factors, and that loss of balance, a drooping face, weakness on one side or slurred speech call for a hospital at once.

On costs, Professor Syed Abdul Hamid of Dhaka University's Institute of Health Economics said only 12 to 13 per cent of people work in the formal sector; collecting regular insurance premiums from the other 87 per cent is very hard. He proposed a national health fund as an alternative to health insurance.

Cardiac surgeon Professor Major (retd) M Kamrul Islam Talukdar of the National Heart Foundation Hospital said about 90 per cent of bypass operations are now done in Bangladesh. Nutritionist Syeda Farhana Mahmud advised eating less rice and bread and more vegetables.

The roundtable recommended more heart care and trained staff outside Dhaka, a national screening programme for congenital heart disease and affordable medicines for poor patients. For rural and farming families, the point is plain: while care stays far away, a single operation can wipe out a household's savings.

Source: Prothom Alo