Dhaka, Feb. 25 -- Pharmaceutical companies in Bangladesh increasingly influence medical prescriptions by offering incentives to doctors, raising ethical and medical concerns that largely go unchecked.

Sales representatives from pharmaceutical companies are often seen waiting outside clinics and hospitals, eager for a moment to speak with doctors. In many cases, they even monitor prescriptions as patients leave, taking photographs to ensure their drugs are being recommended.

Sirajul Rabi, a patient at a leading private hospital in Dhaka, experienced this first-hand. "As soon as I stepped out of the doctor's office, I was surrounded by sales representatives. They bombarded me with questions, eager to know which medications had been prescr...