Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

Nursing Personnel Convention, 1977 (No. 149) - Bangladesh (Ratification: 1979)

The Committee notes with regret that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous comments.

Repetition

Article 2(1) and (3) of the Convention. National policy concerning nursing services and nursing personnel. The Committee notes that the new National Health Policy was adopted in 2011. The Committee would appreciate if the Government would provide additional information on the implementation of the National Health Policy and the results obtained. It would also be grateful if the Government would specify whether and how the employers’ and workers’ organizations concerned were associated with the formulation of this policy and its update.

Article 3(1). Nursing education and training. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the regulations provided for under section 19 of the Bangladesh Nursing Council Ordinance, 1983, concerning the basic requirements for nursing education and training have not yet been adopted. The Committee also notes the information provided by the Government that the new structure of nursing education came into force in January 2008, which consists of a four-year bachelor programme in nursing and midwifery science, a two-year post-bachelor programme in nursing and public health and a master degree programme in nursing and relevant fields. It requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any progress made in the revision process of the Bangladesh Nursing Council Ordinance, and to transmit a copy of the amended Ordinance and its regulations once they have been issued.

In addition, according to the report of the Bangladesh Health Watch entitled “The State of Health in Bangladesh 2007”, to which the draft updated National Health Policy refers, the Committee notes that while the aim of these educational reforms is to address the domestic shortage of nursing personnel, the same report estimates that many of the graduates will find employment overseas. It understands that numerous nurses migrated to foreign countries, particularly in the Middle East, even though numbers appear to be declining in recent years. According to a study published in June 2007, during the period 1991–2004, a total of 20,825 female workers migrated from Bangladesh through formal channels. Approximately 6 per cent of the emigrant female workers were nurses, of which 87 per cent went to Middle Eastern countries (mainly Saudi Arabia) and the rest to the Far East (mostly Malaysia). The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged in order to maintain a sustainable domestic nursing workforce. In this respect, the Committee wishes to refer to the WHO Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel, adopted in 2010, which urges member States to enter into bilateral and multilateral arrangements to promote cooperation and coordination on migrant health personnel recruitment processes in order to maximize the benefits and mitigate the potential negative impact of international recruitment of health personnel, and also calls for measures in order to retain and sustain a skilled domestic health workforce by improving their social and economic status, their living and working conditions, their opportunities for employment and their career prospects.

Article 6. Working conditions of nursing personnel. Further to its previous comments on this point, the Committee notes the Government’s renewed reference to the proposal sent to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare regarding the improvement of the present status and pay scale of nursing officers and the creation of new posts. In the absence of any new information, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the contents of the proposal made and to keep the Office informed of any progress made in this regard.

Article 7. Occupational safety and health of nursing personnel. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that efforts are currently made in order to adapt existing laws and regulations on occupational health and safety to the special nature of nursing work, as provided for in this Article of the Convention. The Government also refers to awareness-raising campaigns on prevention and protection from various infectious diseases. Moreover, the Government refers to the Hospital Improvement Initiative (HII) which aims at creating a safe working environment for hospital team including nurses. The Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any measures that might be taken or envisaged with a view to improving the protection of nursing personnel from infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS.