23,109 Primary Health Centres cater to the population of over 6.5 lakh villages in India.
- In the 11th Five Year Plan, just 64% of the promised allocation of 1.4 lakh crore was spent on health.
- 50% of all villagers have no access to healthcare providers.
- The ratio of hospital beds to people is 9:10,000.
Overview
Primary healthcare, essentially recognized as public good, covers not only medical care but all aspects of pro-preventive care as well. It reinforces and strengthens ones ability to shape his/her life. Quality primary healthcare, if provided extensively and at the right time, has manifold advantages such as an overall decrease in the money spent on medical care, better performance of the health system and better management of chronic diseases.
All these would invariably lead to a decrease in delay in receiving medical care and a fall in hospital admissions. It also acts as a base towards building a pool of productive, effective and efficient citizens. The government launched the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) in April 2005 with an overall aim to strengthen and improve the public health delivery system in the rural areas. It is expected to expand to include urban areas as well by the name of National Health Mission. The new mission has a budgetary allocation of Rs. 21,239 crores.
Early last year, the government announced the Universal Health Coverage aimed at providing healthcare to all. Two ambitious programs namely National Urban Health Mission and Free Essential Medicines were introduced. Currently, the funding for these programs has been deferred.
The Union government has allocated only 1.04% of GDP towards improving health in their 12th plan. This is among the lowest budgetary allocations in the world. In most parts, primary care is virtually non-existent. The private sector spending is more than double of what the government spends in this regard.
Allocation of inadequate funds, faulty or no implementation and poor utilization of resources are some causes for this pitiable situation. Current health care polices are more focused on providing treatment to visible symptoms rather than the overall health of the individual.
SOME CHALLENGES
- There is a short supply of trained practitioners and doctors in the country. In a study conducted in rural Madhya Pradesh, 67% of the sampled health care providers had no medical qualifications at all.
- Further, a report by Save the Children India brought to light the fact that India suffers a shortfall of 26 lakh health workers.
- The reach of primary health care is another challenge. There are steep shortages of centres. Sometimes, people have to travel as long as 20 kms just to reach them. The available centres are marred by shortage of supply and staff. This makes it difficult for sick patients who expend time, energy and resources to reach the centre.
- India has a cumulative shortfall of 17,000 primary health centres. Due to a dearth of qualified physicians, the devoted time per patient is meager.
- It is often difficult to recruit and retain high quality doctors in disadvantaged areas where the need for such personnel is much higher than where they are actually situated.
THE NEXT STEPS
Guaranteeing access to basic health care facilities is essential in any country. Innovative solutions are required to make this possible in India. In this direction, urgent attention needs to be paid to address the issues relating to inadequate health infrastructure and short supply of trained practitioners.
Manthan calls for innovative policy solutions from young enthusiasts.
Manthan is a National level competition organised by the Citizens for Accountable Governance. The competition seeks to bring together India’s youth to present innovative and effective solutions to the top 14 problems facing the Indian economy and society in general. The winners of the competition will get an opportunity to present their recommendations to the top leadership of the two principal national political parties and thought leaders from other domains.
About 7,500 students from across the country, the top leadership of the two principal national political parties and thought leaders from other domains come together at the Thyagaraj Sports Complex, New Delhi on 2nd October, 2013. We believe that Manthan will be a unique opportunity for the youth to help set the agenda for the 2014 General Elections.