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Published : 16 Jun 2026, 01:16 PM
Health Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Husain has stood by the decision to cancel Ad-din Medical College Hospital's licence following the deaths of six newborns, saying he has no regrets.
At the launch of a clinical management guideline on measles treatment at Holy Family Red Crescent Medical College Hospital in Dhaka on Tuesday, the minister says it is unacceptable for six newborns to die through negligence without anyone being held accountable.
"We first cancelled the licence. I don't think I made a wrong decision," he added.
The deaths occurred on May 27 in the post-delivery ward of the private hospital in Moghbazar, a day before Eid-ul-Azha, sending shockwaves across the country.
The minister said he could not visit the hospital immediately as he was away for Eid, but when he did go, he found the room had no windows and only one door.
Twenty-five people had been packed into a small room along with six newborns, he said, adding that oxygen levels had naturally fallen and the babies died as a result.
On the question of negligence, he said no doctors or nurses were present at the time, and those who were there did not take the mothers' concerns seriously.
Sakhawat said accountability and discipline in healthcare must be established, and no hospital or health facility can be allowed to brush off patient deaths caused by negligence.
"Change must come to this country, and that change has to start from within ourselves," he said.
Addressing doctors at the event, the minister said medicine is a humane and noble profession, and quality healthcare cannot be ensured without responsibility, empathy and ethics towards patients.
He urged doctors to listen carefully to patients and treat them with compassion.
On government investment in the sector, the minister said the current fiscal year's budget allocates 1.02 percent of GDP to health, amounting to around Tk 690 billion.
