WMJ 05 2011 - World Medical Association

National and Regional news
MOZAMBIQUE
Sharfuddin Ahmed
has been started, a few obstacles have been
observed like cadre and non-cadre demarcation,
very few departmental posts, the
country’s administrative bureaucracy, etc.
But these have also been resolved through
combined effort from the current BMA
body discussion along with the respective
ministries and professional societies. The
highest commitment to activate the physician’s
quick promotion system came from
the country’s Honorable Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina with her address to the recent
(19 th ) Bangladesh Medical Conference
held in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Her Excellency’s
commitment also makes the situation
easy to achieve other goals, many of which
are in the process of completion, like:
1. Quick ad hoc recruitment of 3,551 doctors
and arrangement of study leaves for them.
2. Under a special consideration, eight
DPCs and the Superior Selection Board
(SSB) have been organized, which have
promoted and posted one director general
of health, five directors, 119 deputy
directors, 189 assistant directors/civil
surgeons, 100 senior consultants in different
disciplines and also awarded a selection
grade to 961 doctors.
3. 1,000 assistant professor posts have
been created and assignment has also
been completed.
4. The Bangladesh Medical and Dental
Council Act has been passed by the National
Assembly of Bangladesh.
5. Intern doctors’ stipend has been increased
from 6,500 BDT to 10,000 BDT.
The Bangladesh Medical Association is
committed to extend its continuous support
to all unfinished or pending decisions about
the physician promotion, education and
skill development program and to bring the
rural and poor population under national
health coverage throughout the country.
Professor Dr. MD. Sharfuddin Ahmed,
Secretary General,
Bangladesh Medical Association
Mozambican Medical Association
The Mozambican Medical Association was
created on the 28 th of March 1992 and has
the following objectives:
• Defend the legitimate interests of their
associates;
• Defend and promote the health care of
the population by having an active position
in all aspects that affect or are beyond
affecting the health of the population;
• Promote and defend the medical profession
concerning the medical education, the
working conditions, professional progress,
social security and working relationship;
• Promote and defend Professional Ethics
and Deontology;
• Promote the continuous medical training
to all their members.
The first constituent members were 94 and
the actual number is nearly 800 between
members and associates. In a country with a
population of more or less than 22,416,881
inhabitants (INE, 2010) and covered by
1042 physicians (MISAU; DNPC; DRH-
SIP, 2010) between national and expat (specialists
that are working in special assignments
with the government), it is a defy for
the health professionals, especially for the
physicians that have a reasoning of 1 doctor
per 21,500 inhabitants to assist all the
population in this young country (Mozambican
independence was gained on the 25 th
of June 1975).
The age pyramid is one with a large base,
with a gross mortality rate of 13.5/1000
(INE, 2007), infant mortality rate of
93.6/1000 (INE, 2007) and life expectancy
of 50 years.
The main causes of mortality are still the
infectious diseases, such as malaria, diarrhea
and pulmonary infections.The HIV/
AIDS infection only came to aggravate the
described situation and, although it has reduced
(it was 16% in adults between 15 and
Rosel Salomão
49 years), it prevails at a rate of 11.5% in
adults from 15 to 49 years (INSIDA, 2009).
In a brief way, I’ve tried to present the country’s
health situation where, in some districts,
there is only one physician, usually a general
practitioner that has to assist the population
24 hours a day, every week and all year.
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