Active participation of biomedical engineers in healthcare stressed

Speakers in a seminar highlighted the importance of the active participation of biomedical engineers in the quality and sustainable development of healthcare in Bangladesh.

They also urged the government to reduce dependency on foreign technical personnel for the maintenance of medical equipment and emphasised the role of biomedical engineering graduates in this regard, according to a press release.

The Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) hosted the “Biomedical Engineers for Quality and Sustainable Healthcare in Bangladesh” programme on the campus, which aimed to bring together experts from the biomedical engineering field to discuss sustainable healthcare in Bangladesh was held on March 21.

Secretary (health services division) of the Health and Family Welfare Ministry Dr Md Anwar Hossain Howlader was the chief guest at the programme where Additional Secretary (health services division) Nazmul Haque Khan, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of BUET Prof Dr Abdul Jabbar Khan, and the regional head of SAARC of the ZEISS Group, Vikas Saxena were present.

The event also covered the inauguration of the Electron Microscope Laboratory and Digital Microscopy Classroom, Ophthalmology, and Vision Laboratory under the labs@location partner platform of Zeiss Microscopy for making BUET part of leading research facilities and having an excellent reputation for implementing microscopy technology, application or workflow.

In the keynote speech, Professor Tarik Arafat highlighted the importance of the active participation of biomedical engineers in the quality and sustainable development of healthcare in Bangladesh and said that the health sector of Bangladesh is developing faster than at any other time in the post-Covid period.

“However, to sustain this development and maintain its quality, the inclusion of biomedical engineers in the healthcare sector is necessary”, he said. He also mentioned how the Department of Biomedical Engineering, BUET has already started to play an active role in the overall management of dialysis services, medical gas, and medical equipment. The establishment of the Electron Microscopy Lab and Digital Microscopy Classroom, Ophthalmology and Vision Lab in collaboration with Zeiss has undoubtedly strengthened the department to play an effective role in the health sector of Bangladesh, he stated.

Dr Md Anwar Hossain Howlader said “BUET is serving our nation technically for a long time” He thanked the biomedical engineering department for their contribution to our healthcare sector so far. He also expects that the department will work further to solve our national needs with government support.

During his welcome speech, Nazmul Haque Khan urged for a reduction in the dependency on foreign technical personnel for the maintenance of medical equipment and emphasized the role of biomedical engineering graduates in achieving this. He also highlighted the importance of cooperation between the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Biomedical Engineering, BUET to achieve this feat.

From ZEISS, Vikas Saxena introduced the successful German technology that has been going on for 176 years and thanked all concerned for the successful implementation of the labs@location partner project in the Biomedical Engineering Department of BUET, which is first of its kind in this region.

In his closing speech, the guest of honour, Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Abdul Jabbar Khan, said that BUET has always been recognised as the centre of excellence in engineering in Bangladesh. He expressed his hope that the biomedical engineering department would make significant contributions to the healthcare sector of the country.