Dhaka Medical College & Hospital (DMCH) (Dhaka) | university

 university, hospital

 Upload a photo

Dhaka Medical College and Hospital was established in 1946 during British rule, it is considered the top medical college in Bangladesh.

Situated at the heart of the city in Ramna, Dhaka Medical College and its affiliate Hospital were accommodated in a building constructed in 1904 as the Secretariat Building for the newly created province of ‘East Bengal and Assam’. After annulment of the new province, the building was transferred to the newly established University of Dhaka in 1921. South-East part of the building was allotted for use of Academic wing of the Faculty of Arts while other parts converted into the university's medical centre and student dormitory. In 1939, Dhaka University Council requested to the then British Government for establishing a medical college in Dhaka. The bureaucratic tangle took 10 years for the Medical College and Hospital to start operation. During World War II, the medical centre and dorm was used by Govt. as "American Base Hospital". When the Americans left, it was transferred whereas a 100- hundred bed hospital was established. This created the base of the DMCH. In July 1946, medical college started its journey with less than 150 students in all years for a 5-years degree course. In the beginning, only four departments - Medical, Surgery, Gynaecology and ENT started. After partition of Bengal in 1947, the college and hospital were expanded to become the premier medical institution of the country. The institute did not have any hostel for students at the beginning. The college and hospital premises were expanded in new temporary sheds built around, some of which were built for outdoor services of the hospital and some others for students' hostels. New buildings for hostel, college and hospital were constructed in phases: a hostel for girls in 1952, a hostel for male students in 1954-55, a new complex of academic buildings in 1955, and a hostel for internee doctors in 1974-75 etc. Further expansion of college and hospital is still continuing.

The college has now 12 departments- anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, pharmacology, community medicine, forensic medicine, pathology, microbiology, medicine, surgery, nuclear medicine, and obstetrics and gynaecology. There are 8 laboratories for each of the department of physiology, biochemistry, pharmacology, pharmacy, histology, histo-pathology, clinical pathology, and microbiology. The medical college has about 200 teachers and over 1,000 students. The annual intake of fresh students in its undergraduate programme is 180. The college also offers 39 different postgraduate courses that include master of surgery (MS) in branches like urology, neurosurgery and orthopaedic surgery, doctor of medicine (MD) in paediatrics, master of philosophy (MPhil) in radiology, and diplomas in a number of disciplines such as anaesthesiology, ophthalmology, laryngology, gynaecology and obstetrics, child health and cardiology. About 1100 MBBS students and 900 doctors are in postgraduate program.

The various buildings of DMCH and other facilities now stand on 25 acres of land. It has 34 departments and 42 wards- 234 doctors, 140 interns, 560 nurses and more than 1100 staff to ensure 24-hour health service. The number of beds in wards, units and cabins total over 2,200. Its occupancy rate is about 130%. It provides both indoor and outdoor services and serves about 3,000 outdoor patients daily The complex accommodate hospital wings, college on north, hostels, nurses hostel, built in phases.

Dhaka Medical College dormitory (known as Barrack) was the heart of the language movement from 1948 to 1952. There was about 20 tin shed barracks where the medical students resided. Several barracks were situated at the same place the Central Shaheed Minar is right now. Being close to the then Parliament of East Pakistan (presently Jagannath Hall of DU), the medical barracks were chosen as the centre of the student movement due to strategic reasons. The Shaheed Minar for language movement was established within DMCH compound which was later separated.