Dental diploma students demand registration, jobs,  higher education

Students of dental diploma courses held a human chain in front of the Jatiya Press Club on Wednesday, demanding professional registration, a change in course name, restoration of higher education opportunities and quick recruitment to vacant government posts.

The students said the four-year dental diploma course has been run under the Bangladesh State Medical Faculty since 1963. At present, around 500 to 600 students complete the course every year at 23 government Institutes of Health Technology (IHTs) and more than 100 private institutions.

However, they said dental diploma holders still do not have professional registration. As a result, they face problems and harassment in their work, even though they are allowed to provide dental services at the grassroots level under the scope of work prepared by the Directorate General of Health Services and approved by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Tanvir Ahmed, convener of the organisation, said several initiatives had been taken over the years to provide professional registration, but no solution had been reached. 

He said other diploma holders with similar qualifications under the State Medical Faculty have received professional registration through the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council, while dental diploma holders have been left out.

The students also demanded that the course name “Diploma in Medical Technology (Dental)” be changed to “Diploma in Dental.” They said the administrative process had already started, but the matter was yet to be settled.

Tanjina Yasmin Maria, spokesperson for the organisation, said dental diploma holders had long been denied opportunities for higher education. She said efforts were made in 1978 to allow diploma holders to enrol in BDS courses, with two seats reserved for them, but the initiative was not implemented.

The students demanded the restoration of higher education opportunities through a lateral entry system and necessary credit waivers.

They also demanded the quick recruitment to vacant government posts, the creation of new posts based on public health needs and a 10th-grade pay scale, similar to other diploma holders.

Nasrulla Al Galib, Raziya Sultana, Zahir Uddin Rahat Badhan and other students and stakeholders were present at the human chain.