What a licence inspection looks for, and the records to keep ready

Last checked: 26 October 2026. This is a plain-language summary of news reports and published requirements, not legal advice. Orders change, so confirm the current rules with DGHS or a lawyer before you rely on them.

Most clinic and diagnostic centre owners only think about inspection when a team is already at the door. By then it is too late to fix a missing document or an outdated staff list. Inspections in Bangladesh have become more frequent, and the findings are reported in the news. This guide sets out what inspections have actually checked, and the records to keep ready so the day is routine.

Why it matters now

Two numbers show the scale of the problem. In May 2025, The Daily Star reported DGHS data showing that only 914 of 19,627 registered private hospitals and clinics, and 1,790 of 35,597 private diagnostic centres, had renewed their licences that fiscal year (The Daily Star). Industry representatives said most had applied, and pointed to slow environmental clearances and too few inspectors.

Since then, DGHS drives have continued. In March 2026, inspections in one area of Dhaka led to suspensions, closures and mobile-court fines (The Daily Star). The findings are a useful checklist of what inspectors look at.

What inspections have found

From that March 2026 report, without naming the facilities:

• Expired licences. Two facilities in the same building were running on licences that had expired in June 2025.
• Staff lists that did not match reality. At one hospital, only one doctor was on duty, and he did not recognise any of the 20 doctors on the list submitted to DGHS.
• Tests outside the licence category. A centre licensed for basic tests was performing tests reserved for a higher category, and was running a blood bank without approval.
• Expired reagents and unsigned reports. A diagnostic centre had no pathologist or radiologist present, used a reagent that had expired, and issued reports without the assigned doctor’s signature.
• Missing emergency and unsafe premises. Hospitals were shut for having no emergency department, poor hygiene, and storing oxygen cylinders next to a generator.

None of these needs a lawyer to fix. They need records that are true and up to date.

The records to keep ready

1. The licence itself

• The current licence, valid and displayed at the entrance.
• The licence number and expiry on your signboard, as DGHS has directed. See our guide to DGHS rules clinics often miss.
• Proof of your renewal application if renewal is in progress.
• Licences now run for two years from FY 2026-27 under an August 2026 order. Read what the two-year licence changes.

2. Renewal documents

Keep current copies in one folder, paper and scanned:

• Updated trade licence.
• Income tax certificate.
• Environmental clearance.
• Narcotics clearance.

These four are named in The Daily Star’s 2025 report. Your facility type may need others (for example, approvals for X-ray equipment or a blood bank), so check your own list with DGHS.

3. Staff list and duty roster

• A staff list with every doctor’s BMDC registration, nurses and technologists, that matches who actually works there.
• A duty roster showing who is on duty each day, especially the pathologist, radiologist and emergency doctor.
• Remove people who have left. A list that cannot be matched to real staff is a serious finding.

4. Tests within your licence category

• A test list that matches your licence category, and no tests outside it.
• The price list displayed for patients.
• Approval for any extra service, such as a blood bank, before you start it.

5. Laboratory quality records

• Reagent and kit expiry dates checked, with expired stock removed and recorded.
• Every report verified and signed by the responsible doctor, with the date and time.
• Equipment list, with service and calibration records.

6. Patient records and registers

• Patient registration, bills and receipts.
• Which tests were done, when, and who verified each report.
• For hospitals: admissions, emergency register and discharge records.

7. Premises and safety

• Clean, safe rooms, with oxygen cylinders stored away from generators and heat.
• Medical waste segregated and handled as required.
• An emergency department where your licence requires one.

Make it a monthly routine

Inspections are easiest when nothing has to be found in a hurry. Once a month:

1. Check the expiry dates of the licence and every certificate in the folder.
2. Update the staff list and the duty roster.
3. Check reagent expiry dates in the lab.
4. Pick five reports at random and check that each is verified and signed.
5. Walk through the premises with the safety and hygiene points above.

Keep a simple renewal calendar for every licence and certificate, with a reminder two to three months before each expiry.

Where Hospify Pro helps

Software cannot get you a licence, but clean digital records make inspection much simpler. In Hospify Pro:

• Every lab and imaging report carries who verified it and when, and prints with the responsible doctor’s name and a QR code anyone can scan to check the report is genuine.
• Your test list and prices are kept in one place, by department.
• Staff, attendance and duty roster are recorded in the HR module.
• Patient registration, bills, receipts and the daily balance are on record, so registers do not have to be rebuilt from paper.
• An audit log records important changes and who made them.

Hospify Pro does not track your licence or certificate expiry dates, so keep a separate renewal calendar. For a new centre, our diagnostic centre checklist covers setting up from the start, and the Diagnostic plan is Tk 6,500 a month$149 a month.

Checklist for inspection day

• Valid licence displayed; number and expiry on the signboard.
• Trade licence, income tax, environmental and narcotics clearance on file.
• Staff list with BMDC numbers, matching who actually works there.
• Duty roster for today, including pathologist, radiologist and emergency doctor.
• Test list within your licence category; price list displayed.
• No expired reagents; expiry checks recorded.
• Every report verified and signed.
• Approvals for any extra service, such as a blood bank.
• Clean, safe premises; oxygen stored safely; medical waste handled properly.
• Renewal calendar for every licence and certificate.