English Version

MSH’s BHB project provided substantial technical assistance to MOHFW’s 4th HPNSP

The MSH’s BHB project was meant for providing technical assistance (TA) to the MOHFW of the Government of Bangladesh for overall health systems strengthening under the umbrella of 4th HPNSP. A Technical Assistance Committee (TAC) of the MOHFW oversaw and coordinated the TA programs. During the BHB project life, 29 TAs were provided, which included: […]

MSH’s BHB project provided substantial technical assistance to MOHFW’s 4th HPNSP Read More »

MSH’s BHB project’s outstanding COVID-19 response

When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit in Bangladesh in 2020, the MOHFW of Bangladesh and in fact the whole world, were drowned in unprecedented uncertainties about the management of the outbreak, prevention, and identification and treatment of the COVID-19 patients. In these initial days, MSH’s BHB project provided critical support to the MOHFW to establish

MSH’s BHB project’s outstanding COVID-19 response Read More »

Surveys show the training is effective to enhance the medicine dispensers’ good pharmacy practice (GPP)

The MSH’s Better Health in Bangladesh project provided training to 14,129 medicine dispensers of Bangladesh as part of DGDA’s model medicine shop and model pharmacy initiative. Two surveys were conducted among the medicine dispensers who received accreditation. The main intention of both the 2022 and 2024 surveys was to see whether the medicine dispensers of

Surveys show the training is effective to enhance the medicine dispensers’ good pharmacy practice (GPP) Read More »

National Guideline on Accreditation of Model Pharmacy and Model Medicine Shop in Bangladesh – a valuable document to guide the National Drug Authority to sustain the accreditation program of retail medicine shops 

About the guideline The MSH’s Better Health in Bangladesh project assisted the DGDA in developing a national guideline to sustain the program to accredit model pharmacies and model medicine shops without external assistance. A committee headed by a Director of DGDA led the development process of the guidelines. The guideline has been printed and distributed

National Guideline on Accreditation of Model Pharmacy and Model Medicine Shop in Bangladesh – a valuable document to guide the National Drug Authority to sustain the accreditation program of retail medicine shops  Read More »

Is the red labeling of antibiotic packaging initiative working?

What is red labelling of antibiotic packaging? The private medicine shops are one of the largest providers of medicines to the consumers in Bangladesh. Some prescription-only medicines are often sold without prescriptions. In November-December 2021, the DGDA conducted a baseline survey in collaboration with WHO Bangladesh and Fleming Fund. The survey investigated the level of

Is the red labeling of antibiotic packaging initiative working? Read More »

Model Medicine Shops – a pathway to ensuring access to safe medicines for consumers in Bangladesh

What are Model Medicine Shops? Before MSH’s BHB project, which was launched in 2018, there were no standards set by the DGDA for licensed retail medicine shops to store and sell medicines. With BHB facilitation, DGDA developed and enforced a standard guideline for this purpose. The accreditation process involved several steps: assessing the medicine shops, training

Model Medicine Shops – a pathway to ensuring access to safe medicines for consumers in Bangladesh Read More »

Beyond the GPP Training Target – The case of dispensers’ training

One of the project’s objectives of the BHB project was to help improve the safety of medicines delivered to the consumers through providing training to the pharmacy professionals working in retail medicine shops. In 2021, BHB launched an eLearning platform to The transformation of a retail medicine shop to either a Model Medicine Shop or

Beyond the GPP Training Target – The case of dispensers’ training Read More »

BHB’s eLearning Platform – where pharmacy professionals can easily access free resources for continuing professional education

One of the objectives of the BHB project was to help improve the safety of medicines delivered to the consumers through providing training to the pharmacy professionals working in retail medicine shops. In 2021, BHB launched an eLearning platform to address the lack of learning resources for the continuing professional education of these pharmacy professionals.

BHB’s eLearning Platform – where pharmacy professionals can easily access free resources for continuing professional education Read More »

HMIS of Directorate General of Medical Education – A powerful tool to oversee the medical education system of Bangladesh

Background The Directorate General of Medical Education (DGME), the newest entity under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of Bangladesh, has not only focused on essential infrastructural development but also prioritized the creation of a comprehensive Health Management Information System (HMIS). This HMIS aims to closely monitor all medical education institutions and centers, both

HMIS of Directorate General of Medical Education – A powerful tool to oversee the medical education system of Bangladesh Read More »

ADLRS — Empowering the future of pharmacy regulation in Bangladesh

What is ADLRS? The Automated Drug Licensing and Renewal System (ADLRS) is a digital platform developed by the Better Health in Bangladesh project of MSH for DGDA. The idea was to transform the manual system of drug license issuance into an online automated system. Following originally developed in 2020, the ADLRS received a massive upgrade

ADLRS — Empowering the future of pharmacy regulation in Bangladesh Read More »

PMS – A potential contributor to containing AMR

What is the PMS? The Better Health in Bangladesh (BHB) project developed a Pharmacy Management Software (PMS) for the DGDA. It is a cutting-edge solution designed to streamline and optimize pharmacy business management tasks required by a retail medicine shop. Key features Inventory Management Sales and Billing Reporting and Analytics Antibiotics Containment Expiry tracking of

PMS – A potential contributor to containing AMR Read More »

MSH’s HR provided substantial IT support to DGDA

The Better Health in Bangladesh (BHB) project maintained an IT technical person’s presence at the DGDA since 2021. This outsourced IT professional managed and maintained DGDA’s IT resources, including desktop computers, laptops, servers, LAN, routers, switches, firewalls, power supply, and high-speed internet connectivity. He also oversaw the DGDA’s website and server room and provided daily

MSH’s HR provided substantial IT support to DGDA Read More »

Saying Goodbye to all our partners, stakeholders, end-users, and beneficiaries

The Management Sciences for Health (MSH) is implementing a project Better Health in Bangladesh (BHB) from September 2018 and to close in December 2024. Funded by UK International Development, the project provided extensive technical support to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) of the Government of Bangladesh for its 4th Health, Population, and

Saying Goodbye to all our partners, stakeholders, end-users, and beneficiaries Read More »

BHB’s IT Support to DGDA continues

BHB has continued its IT support to the DGDA including website content uploads, end-user assistance, troubleshooting for both software and hardware, network maintenance, system security monitoring, data backups and recovery, as well as collaboration and technical support for the Automated Drug Licensing and Renewal System and the Pharmacy Management Software. An overview follows: Website content

BHB’s IT Support to DGDA continues Read More »

BHB’s awareness campaigns on AMR and flooding dangers

BHB’s public health awareness campaign focused on GPP, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and emerging issues such as healthy practices during the flood and post-flood situation. Between July and August 2024, BHB’s Facebook content reached almost 967,000 people, and the number of page followers reached 33,000. The AMR awareness campaign during this time included an appealing poster

BHB’s awareness campaigns on AMR and flooding dangers Read More »

DGDA’s commitment to the medicine shop accreditation program during the Bangladesh flooding

BHB’s target of accrediting 10,000 medicine shops by September 2024 was in danger when a major flash flood hit the eastern part of Bangladesh on 17 August 2024. As of 16 August 2024, 9,166 (91.7% of target) medicine shops had been accredited. Despite the disruption caused by the floods, the regulatory authority, the Directorate General

DGDA’s commitment to the medicine shop accreditation program during the Bangladesh flooding Read More »

BHB’s personalized care helped a hospitalized participant complete GPP training

Since the project began in 2018, BHB has trained 14,129 pharmacy professionals in Bangladesh on GPP. In the last round of online training, Murad Ali, a trainee from Jhenaidah district, fell severely ill. A heart patient, Murad’s condition worsened requiring urgent treatment abroad. However, BHB’s training associate was determined to help him complete the training.

BHB’s personalized care helped a hospitalized participant complete GPP training Read More »

Community pharmacy density in Bangladesh: an astonishing fact

Bangladesh has approximately 156,000 licensed medicine shops and 160,000 unlicensed medicine shops totaling 316,000. About 90% (n=284,000) of these medicine shops are community pharmacies. A community pharmacy is a healthcare facility that provides pharmaceutical services to the public. So, there are 16.7 community pharmacies, on average per 10,000 people of Bangladesh. In contrast, in the USA, the

Community pharmacy density in Bangladesh: an astonishing fact Read More »