The Bangladesh government has begun training 5,000 nurses and medical technologists in dialysis care as part of plans to rapidly introduce services for kidney patients at district and upazila levels nationwide. The government has also decided to create 2,500 new posts for nurses and medical technologists.
Director General of the Directorate General of Nursing and Midwifery Dil Afroza said training had already begun for 120 participants. “Ninety people are being trained at the National Kidney Foundation, 20 in Pabna and 10 in Rajshahi,” she said.
Dil Afroza said the programme would soon be expanded on a large scale to several locations, including Sylhet. Additional nurses are also being recruited to ensure dialysis services for kidney patients across the country within a short period, she added.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Hossain said 50-bed kidney dialysis centres would be established at every medical college hospital, while 10-bed dialysis centres would be set up at every district headquarters hospital.
Applications have already been collected from nurses serving at government medical college hospitals, specialised hospitals and district headquarters hospitals for participation in the training programme under the 2026-27 fiscal year. Applicants must have completed at least two years of government service and be no older than 40.
The decisions were taken at a Health Services Division meeting chaired by Prime Minister Tarek Rahman on August 12. The meeting was organised by a coordination cell tasked with implementing commitments and proposed programmes of members of parliament.
The Prime Minister’s Office sent the meeting’s record of notes to the Health Services Division secretary on August 24 for necessary follow-up action.
Prime Minister Tarek Rahman visited the Health Ministry on July 20 this year. A meeting held that day decided to establish 10-bed kidney dialysis centres in every district.
According to the Kidney Awareness Monitoring and Prevention Society (CAMPS), around 38 million people in Bangladesh suffer from some form of kidney disease. About 40,000 patients become dependent on dialysis each year.
Dialysis services remain concentrated in Dhaka and other major cities, leaving many patients in remote areas without access to treatment. The government is therefore planning to expand dialysis services to hospitals at district and upazila levels.
Bangladesh Renal Association data show that the country has around 146 dialysis centres, with 65 to 70 per cent located in Dhaka. Dialysis services remain inadequate in peripheral areas as a result.
Official documents show that a work plan will be prepared to establish dialysis facilities at upazila level three years after district-level centres become fully operational.
Under the August 12 meeting decisions, training will be arranged for 5,000 participants, including 2,500 nurses, in batches of 50 to 100. The National Institute of Kidney Diseases and Urology (NIKDU) and the National Kidney Foundation will conduct the training.
The meeting also decided to post probationary doctors to their respective upazilas to address shortages of physicians at the grassroots level. Doctors from neighbouring upazilas or districts will be appointed where suitable physicians are unavailable locally.
Other decisions include ensuring automated postings of professors, associate professors, assistant professors, lecturers and consultants by September 15; placing a project to upgrade all upazila health complexes to 151 beds before the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council within one month; and establishing a 600-bed general hospital in Mirpur instead of a medical college.