Webinar Guests: 

1. Dr. Taufique Joarder
   Associate Professor, NUS Global Health Institute, Singapore  
2. Dr. Fahad Hossain,
   Assistant Registrar, Shahid Sayed Nazrul Islam Medical College, Kisoreganj
3. Host: Raihana Sayeeda Kamal,
   Communication and Public Policy Expert

A webinar on absenteeism among doctors in rural areas was held on 15th October, 4pm at zoom platform and live streamed on Facebook platform. The webinar  aims to explore its causes, impact, and potential solutions. The session featured insights from two speakers, Dr. Taufique Joarder, public health specialist and health systems expert. Another one Dr. Fahad Hossain, Assistant Registrar, Shahid Syed Nazrul Islam Medical College of Kishoreganj, shared first-hand experiences from a rural healthcare setting.

The discussion aimed to highlight the causes of absenteeism among doctors, particularly in rural healthcare facilities and how could the challenges could be addressed. 

The webinar started with the idea of what is absenteeism, Dr Joarder explained that there are two causes, i) de facto, and ii) de jure reasons for absenteeism. 

Dr Fahad Hossain talks about poor infrastructure and living conditions in rural areas.  Particularly female doctors don’t want to stay in rural or urban settings because of some safety security issues, a lack of professional incentives and career growth opportunities. The key reasons for absenteeism were found in the webinar, as follows

1. Lack of basic amenities, infrastructure, housing, security and transportation, 
2. Unplanned career tracks, lack of proper systems or policies,
3. Absence of allowances, policy provision for career path development,
4. Provision of post-graduation and in-service training to the medical doctors,  
5. Personal safety concerns and family-related constraints.
6. Hostile attitude of community people. Physicians, particularly female ones, often face verbal or physical abuse from the local community, which further discourages them from staying in rural facilities.

Some strategies that could be adopted, as suggested by the experts are;

1. Implement routine inspections at healthcare facilities to ensure doctors are present and fulfilling their duties.
2. Use biometric/fingerprint systems to track attendance and to prevent manipulation of records proper monitoring is needed.
3. Improve living and working conditions, including accommodation, transportation, and safety, to make rural postings more attractive.
4. Offering additional financial incentives for doctors 
5. Acknowledge and reward doctors 
6. Facilitate with advanced post-graduate degrees for the promotion of doctors.

The webinar brought attention to the contextual factors driving absenteeism among rural doctors. The webinar gets 800+ views and a reach of 1000 people with 10 shares.

Webinar Link: https://www.facebook.com/822003406/videos/578828341162826/