Dr. Nowsheen Sharmin Purabi is a Consultant Gynecologist, writer and dedicated health activist well known for her untiring work to establish sexual and reproductive health right by creating awareness and serving door step health services for last 15 years. She is dedicated to empower the underprivileged with the comprehensive health education and support. Focused area her works are adolescent-maternal-reproductive health, VAWG.
Dr. Purabi was born and educated in Dhaka, Bangladesh. She was exposed to cultural activities at an early age of four. She achieved several national and international awards for her outstanding cultural and academic activities. She studied at Viqarun Nisa Noon School and College (A prestigious girls school and college) in Dhaka, Bangladesh. She obtained her MBBS degree from Bangladesh Medical College on 2003. She further specialized in Obstetrics and Gynecology from Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeon.
Vision:
Her vision is to ensure ‘Good health for all’ by empowering the under privileged women through awareness and support . She is helping the women to take their own control on reproductive health, guiding them towards proper and timely utilization of health facilities, strengthen community participation and voluntary activities. Thus cut short the individual health budget. Focused area of her works are respectful maternity care, pre conceptional preparation, safe abortion and post abortion care, non communicable disease prevention and control, antibiotic resistance, VAWG, adolescent health, contraception, STD, maternal health, life style modification, obesity control, vaccination, nutrition, mental health, first aid and basic life support.
Mission:
Her activities are challenging taboos, eradicating malpractice.
1. As a strong media and communication professional she is working in electronic and print media for last 10 years. She was the planner and presenter of ground breaking, longest running, fortnightly health awareness TV show “TonuMon[Mind and Body]” in the only National Broadcasting Channel ‘Bangladesh Television’ since 2008. It had approximate 40 million viewers per episode. It has completed 250 episodes in past 10 years. In this visionary television show devoted to adolescent and women’s awareness in depth discussion of a single reproductive health issues take place with the aid of visual illustration, expert opinion, live question answer session.
2. She is the regular contributor of sexual and reproductive health right and women’s health related articles in national Bengali and English newspapers of Bangladesh.
3. As a trainer she is training volunteers mostly among the college, university students. Having been trained by Dr. Purabi with skills and resources these volunteers are running awareness program individually in their community on adolescent health changes, STI, contraceptives, safe abortion, pre pregnancy preparation, VAWG.
4. Sometimes women of hard to reach area cannot go to the health center timely as she needs someone to accompany her or she is financially dependent or health center is far away from her. With the help of the volunteers and stake holders she moves to the door step of the women with necessary equipment to do free cervical and breast cancer screening.
5. She is educating high school boys and girls of rural and urban area on adolescent health changes, menstrual hygiene, STI, mental health, safe abortion, VAWG.
6. She uses ICT to wide spread health education and information. Her YouTube Channel “Dr. Purabi’s Help Desk” provides free lectures in Bengali on maternal-reproductive-adolescent health. The Obstetrical and Gynecological Society of Bangladesh uses this help desk as resource material for their member physician to refer to. It has a wide impact on health awareness and motivation. Bengali speaking people all over the world are using these free lectures. Number of viewers are increasing day by day. Field level health worker and medical students are also benefited by her articles and lectures on health issues attached in her web portal. YouTube
7.Thousands of her followers are regularly updated with health information by her facebook page “Dr. Purabi’s Help Desk”. Her YouTube channel and Facebook page insight shows majority of her followers are males. She is working to establish “He for She” side by side with women empowerment. Facebook
8. Through her research publication, TV show, newspaper write up, seminars she draws the attention of the policy maker to take urgent necessary action on women’s health related issues.
9. She is the author of a book “Life Stories: Observation of a Physician”. All stories of the book seem to be matter of fact. So much empathetic feeling for the patient to be portrayed by her. Spanning the psychological, medical and gender specific aspect of women’s health the book is broad in space and raises strong advocacy issues and strategic plan for health and wellness initiatives related to women and girls. The book is devoted with strong emphasis on preventive strategies.
Impact:
Her biggest impact is the ability to convey health information and education to millions every day. Benefit of her contribution crosses the geographical barrier and touches the lives of more people than she has ever imagined. Bengali being the fifth largest language in the world is spoken by more than 230 million people worldwide. According to the YouTube report, Bengali speaking people across the continents are being benefited though these free lectures on YouTube. The number of audience is increasing day by day. Medical students are availing these lecture as resource material.
She is the first consultant physician in Bangladesh who has taken the initiative to raise health awareness among the women in such a level. Her activities are creating awareness, challenging taboos and eradicating malpractice.
Her TV show, newspaper write up, research publications, book are also drawing attention of the policy makers of Bangladesh to determine the priorities and take necessary action to meet the need of health sector.
Background:
As a young medical practitioner she started providing free medical service in her own village during weekend from her social responsibility. In course of her volunteer service she came to note the wide spread ignorance on basic reproductive health care. She found most people hesitant, ignorant or too poor to consult doctors. Frequent delay in consulting doctors often led to otherwise preventable complications, increase in treatment expenses and reduction in chance of survival. In Bangladesh poverty is not always the culprit rather the lack of awareness on basic health issues that result in suffering. These motivated her to create health awareness among the people specially women.
Job at present: Consultant, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Orion Renal And General Hospital, Dhaka
Managing Director: Live Healthy LTD.
Chairman : Live Healthy Foundation.
Recognition:
She has already been recognized as a country leader/opinion leader by different national and international organizations.
1. Nominated by Embassy of the USA to participate International Visitor Leadership Program 2012. The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) is the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange program. Through short-term visits to the United States, current and emerging foreign leaders in a variety of fields experience this country firsthand and cultivate lasting relationships with their American counterparts. Professional meetings reflect the participants’ professional interests and support the foreign policy goals of the United States.
2. She was invited by the Rotary International to be the Guest speaker in South Asian Rotaract Conference 2012.
3. She was invited to attain Global Forum on Prevention of Cervical Cancer, 2013 (KL, Malaysia) for her awareness campaign on Prevention of Cervical Cancer.
4. Nominated by Microsoft as Brand ambassador, Windows Women Program.
5. Selected for participation 2016-2017 Community Solution Program, a program of Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of US Department of States. It is a professional development program for the best and brightest global community leaders.
6. Listed as Top 10 health awareness activist by LinkedIn.
7. Selected as member spotlight: Springboard for health communication professionals by USAID and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Communication Programs (CCP).
8. Finalist: The 6th annual WEGO health award.
9. Finalist: 120 under 40 By Bill and Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health, http://120under40.org/nominee/dr-nowsheen-purabi
Publications:
1. Asthma in Pregnancy – An overview. Nowsheen Sharmin Purabi [Chest and heart Journal 2011; 35(2): 107-112]
2. Chlamydia infection and male factor infertility-Dr. Nowsheen Sharmin Purabi [Dinajpur Med Col J 2012 Jul; Read more
3. Effect of Bronchial Asthma on Premenstrual syndrome [Chest and heart Journal 2012; 36(1): 48-54]
4. Plural Endometriosis: A case report [Chest and heart Journal 2012; 36(1): 88-89]
5. Beating Cervical Cancer in the Developed Countries: A Dream or a Reality? Click Here for Read More
6. Ongoing research as co-investigator: Development of an effective molecular based system for HPV gentrifying and cervical cancer detection in female population in Bangladesh.
7. Accessibility of low cost sanitary napkin in rural and semi-urban community of Bangladesh: http://www.ssnimc.gov.bd/journal/ssnimcj_2018_jan_v03_i1/27_sn_026_2018_v3_i1_purobi_sanitary_napkin.pdf
8. Beating cervical cancer in developed countries: A dream or a reality? https://www.intechopen.com/books/howtoreference/current-topics-in-public-health/beating-cervical-cancer-in-the-developed-countries-a-dream-or-a-reality-
9. Ekjon Chikithsoker Dekha Jiboner Golpo[Life Stories: Observation of a physician]: Bengali. https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=ekjon+chikithsoker+dekha+jiboner+golpo
10. Life Stories: Observation of a Physician, English. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1982092440/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1514531659&sr=8-1&keywords=life+stories+observation+of+a+physician
