National Professor Mohammad Ibrahim: A believer in change
Dr Mohammad Ibrahim’s death anniversary is Diabetes Service Day (Sheba Dibosh), to remember and honour his outstanding contribution to socio-medicare services
National Professor Mohammad Ibrahim (1911–1989) was a celebrated physician, a gifted teacher, a talented organiser, and a great reformer. His contributions in the field of medicine in general and diabetes in particular have been nothing less than phenomenal. He spent most of his life in key positions in government health services.
Dr Ibrahim was the founder of the Diabetic Association in Dhaka (1956) and in Karachi and Lahore, West Pakistan (1964). He realised that when it came to diabetes, both doctors and patients need to be involved in the treatment. He termed it socio-medical care.
Although the real extent of the problem of diabetes was not evident in our part of the world at that time, he foresaw the present situation and organised a group of social workers, philanthropists, and professionals. With their help, he established the Diabetic Association of Pakistan on 28 February, 1956.
Diabetic care in Dhaka was started in a tin-shed building at Segun Bagicha with only 23 patients. Dr Ibrahim's motto was "no diabetic patient should die untreated, unfed, or unemployed, even if she or he is poor." So, he gave primary care to diabetic patients free of charge. Even rich patients were not allowed to pay for primary diabetic care, but they could donate money to the association. The funds were raised through motivational programmes.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
He established the Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation in Diabetes, Endocrine, and Metabolic Disorders (Birdem) in Dhaka in 1980, where the outpatient centre of the Bangladesh Diabetic Association was shifted.
The institute is housed in two large buildings, named the Ibrahim Memorial Diabetes Centre after his death in 1989. To develop trained and specialised manpower, he also established an academy in Birdem for postgraduate education in diabetes, endocrine, and metabolism.
Birdem has been acclaimed as a model for Southeast Asia. In recognition of its innovative, extensive, and high-quality service, it was designated in 1982 as a "WHO-Collaborating Centre for Developing Community-Oriented Programmes for Prevention and Control of Diabetes." It is the first such centre in Asia.
Dr Ibrahim was aware of the importance of service provided to the patients. He used to tell patients, "We are grateful to you for giving us the opportunity to serve." Deep empathy and compassion were characteristics of his dealings with patients, especially those who were poor and in pain. He also motivated other doctors to serve patients with empathy.
He included social welfare, health education, nutritional education, and rehabilitation in the diabetes healthcare delivery system. He always believed that an institution achieves its goal and excellence not by bricks and mortar, machines, or metal, but through its human resources. He spent all his life developing talented human resources.
For over three decades, Dr Ibrahim raised awareness about diabetes through free-of-charge quality services, health education, and motivation. He also established the Bangladesh Institute of Research and Training for Applied Nutrition (BIRTAN) and Rehabilitation and Vocational Training Centre (RVTC) in Dhaka to develop low-cost nutrition and give vocational training to poor and unemployed diabetics.
He also set up a family planning section at Birdem for motivational work. His involvement began as a founder member of the Family Planning Association of Bangladesh, which first started its programme in the mid-fifties.
He made an impact as the adviser to the president, with the rank of minister in charge of the Ministry of Health and Population Control and Social Welfare in the mid-1970s. He was instrumental in formulating the population control policy of the government for the first time and introduced the National Population Council.
Following the guidance and philosophy of its founder, the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh has upheld its motto that in Bangladesh, no diabetic should die untreated or unfed, even if he or she is poor, and that all people shall be provided with affordable health care services.
The association has set some targets and objectives as part of its mission. These include, inter alia, providing total healthcare, including prevention, control, and rehabilitation, for all diabetics through different institutions of the Association; expanding these services to provide affordable healthcare through self-sustaining centres of excellence; developing human resources; creating specialised, quality manpower (physicians, technicians, nurses, etc.) of high ethical standards for manning these institutions; developing leadership in healthcare through a dedicated and transparent management system; developing industries for diabetic and health foods; and manufacturing medicines.
Diabetes care centres have been established in and around Dhaka and all over the country by local entrepreneurs. There are 63 branches in district headquarters and 14 sub-affiliated centres at the upazila level.
Dr Mohammad Ibrahim died on 6 September 1989. His death anniversary is observed as Diabetes Service Day (Sheba Dibosh) to remember and honour his great contribution to socio-medicare services.
Dr Muhammad Abdul Mazid is a Former Secretary and Chairman of NBR. He is also a National Council Member of Bangladesh Diabetes Association.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.
