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The government is set to recruit 100,000 new health workers under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to tackle the longstanding workforce shortage in public hospitals, Health Minister Sardar Md. Sakhawat Hossain told parliament on Monday.
Responding to a question from MP Sabikun Nahar during the parliamentary session, the minister said the recruitment drive aims to strengthen healthcare services and fill thousands of vacant posts across the country.
He said public hospitals currently have 9,407 vacant doctor positions out of 41,806 approved posts. Among nurses, 4,577 of the 49,879 approved positions remain unfilled.
The minister noted that the largest staffing gap exists among field-level health workers. Of 65,230 approved posts in various field-level categories, 18,947 are vacant.
The vacancies include 8,293 posts for Family Welfare Assistants, 3,161 for Family Welfare Visitors, 6,953 for Health Assistants, and 540 for Community Health Care Providers (CHCPs).
Sakhawat Hossain said recruitment to vacant posts is an ongoing process. To address the shortage of physicians, assistant surgeons are being recruited in phases through the 45th to 50th Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations. Recruitment of senior staff nurses and midwives is also progressing through the Bangladesh Public Service Commission (BPSC).
The minister added that, in line with the government’s election manifesto, the plan to recruit 100,000 health workers is intended to bring healthcare services closer to people’s doorsteps. He said the recruitment process would be completed as quickly as possible to fill the existing vacancies.
