Category: Project Blog
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New Cervical Cancer Screening Training and Research Center

Posted on December 15, 2023December 15, 2023 by Md. Saiful Alam

New Cervical Cancer Screening Training and Research Center

The cervical Cancer Screening Training and Research Center of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH), was inaugurated on February 20th, 2023, with the aim to become the regional training hub for cervical cancer in Bangladesh, providing training to providers from various districts and upazilas of Bangladesh.

The opening ceremony was graced by esteemed guests, including the Director General of Health Services (DGHS), Professor Dr. Abul Basar Mohammad Khurshid Alam (DG), and Additional Director General (Administration), Professor Dr. Ahmedul Kabir (ADG), who joined in the ribbon cutting ceremony to officially launch the center. The center has also received support from Brown University Global Health Initiative, Health and Education for All (HAEFA), and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)’s technical facilitators, who are providing their expertise to ensure the center’s success.

The center has also received support from the Brown University Global Health Initiative and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)’s technical facilitators, who are providing their expertise to ensure the success of the center. In addition, these organizations are also involved in capacity building and strengthening public healthcare facilities for cervical cancer in nine upazilas of Kurigram District and six upazilas of Cox’s Bazar District. The center’s primary focus is on capacity building and training of service providers to improve the quality of cervical cancer screening and treatment in Bangladesh. By providing a centralized location for training, the center will be able to offer accessible and effective services to those in need.

HAEFA Commitment to Support Mental Health and Reduce Stigma

Posted on October 20, 2022October 20, 2022 by Md. Saiful Alam

HAEFA Commitment to Support Mental Health and Reduce Stigma

HAEFA, in collaboration with Project HOPE and partners at the National Institute of Mental Health, and BSMMU, Dhaka, has been implementing “HERO-BANGLADESH,” an online Mental Health and Resiliency Training of the Trainers (TOT) for frontline healthcare workers including physicians, nurses, paramedics of Bangladesh since November 2021.

This Mental Health TOT was inaugurated by the Honorable Minister Dr. Dipu Moni, MP, Ministry of Education on November 25, 2021. Other dignitaries present at the occasion were Prof. Dr. Robed Amin, Line Director, NCD, DGHS, as well as national mental health specialists Prof. Dr. Mohit Kamal, Dr. Mekhala Sarkar, and other mental health experts and enthusiasts from the USA and Bangladesh. The session was moderated by Prof. Dr. Ruhul Abid and other volunteer physicians, trainers, and management staff of HAEFA. This online, live, interactive training course has two modules:

Module 1: Overview of Stress; and Module 2: Management of Stress and Building Resilience.

It is a Free of Cost two-day course with two-hour per day, led by the mental health experts of BSMMU, NIMH, and volunteer physicians and enthusiasts of Bangladesh and the USA.

After completing both modules, trainers get a “Training Completion Certificate” and other training materials. Participants of the TOT will then conduct cascading trainings to share mental health resources within their networks. HERO-BANGLADESH is aiming to train 3,000 healthcare workers by April 2022.

The primary goal is to ensure this information is disseminated as widely as possible throughout Bangladesh.

As of April 2022, HAEFA and partners have trained 434 health care providers, public health and humanitarian workers, and other professionals as trainers for the HERO-Bangladesh Mental Health and Resilience curriculum in collaboration with project HOPE.

Through the ToT model, over 5,295 individuals have received cascading training. Thank you to the many partners (NIMH, BSMMU, DGHS, DMCH) who made this program a success!

Food supply for low-income and underprivileged families in Bangladesh during this Ramadan

Posted on April 4, 2022May 15, 2022 by Chonchol Mahmud

Would you like to join us in providing two-week food supply to 1,000 extremely low-income and underprivileged families in Bangladesh during this Ramadan? You can send two-week food supply for a 5-member family for only $12.50 per family in Bangladesh. www.haefa.org or bKash: 01770-433662.

During the first one year of COVID-19, due to lockdowns and joblessness, 24.5 million people went below the poverty line in Bangladesh in 2021. That’s almost 500,000 families below poverty line!

Like last Ramadan in 2021, with your kind help and support, HAEFA plans to deliver emergency food packages to 1,000 families this 2022 Ramadan.

Each food package costs $12.50. If your friends, colleagues, and families would like to DONATE or send ZAKAT, please encourage them to donate to HAEFA (www.haefa.org). If you are in Bangladesh, you may bKash your Zakat or donation to HAEFA’s bKash account: 01770-433662. We can help you send food packages to additional 1,000 families in need NOW. DONATE www.haefa.org or bKash: 01770-433662

Cervical cancer and the history making of Kurigram

Posted on December 6, 2021May 15, 2022 by Chonchol Mahmud

Today is our 4th day of the Single-visit “See-and-Treat” Cervical cancer screening and treatment program in Kurigram. Yesterday, December 3rd 2021, Kurigram made a history in the treatment of cervical cancer in Bangladesh !

Women aged 30-60 years of age who will be diagnosed with pre-cancerous lesion (<carcinoma-in-situ 2) in the uterine cervix will no longer need to leave their families/job to travel 50 to 70 KM or cross Dhorola or Dudhkumar rivers to go to Rangpur medical college !

All women from 9 upazilas (subdistricts) of Kurigram will get their treatment the same day by a MobileODT (optical detection technology) and a hand-held battery-operated Thermocoagulator for Cervical cancer. This procedure will make them disease-free at least for 5 years.

Congratulations to all the team members from DGHS-UNFPA-FCDO-Brown and HAEFA !

Excellent team work ! Thank you all. This is truly great – you now have successfully established the Single-visit, ‘See-and-Treat’ Cervical Cancer screening and treatment model in Kurigram ! The first district to do it ever in Bangladesh! My heartiest Congratulations to all involved !!