Question 17: Discuss the main drawbacks of our health care system.
Answer:
In recent years, India has embarked upon the development of vast health infrastructure.. This is evident from the fall in the death rate, infant mortality rate and rise in life expectancy. But more needs to be done in the field of health care. The following are some of the deficiencies in the Indian health care:
a. Unequal Distribution of Health Care Services: The health care services are unequally distributed across rural and urban areas. Rural areas that supports 70 % of the population, has only 15th of the hospitals. Further, the doctor-population ratio is as worse as 1:2,000. This implies that for every 2,000 people, there is only one doctor in India. Only half of the dispensaries are set up in villages. Most of the health care facilities have been confined mostly to the urban areas.
b. Communicable Diseases: various communicable diseases like AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), HIV (Human Immune Deficiency Syndrome), and SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome)have made their way to India.. All these deadly diseases pose serious threat to the human capital reserve, thereby, impeding economic growth.
c. Poor Management: The health care centres lack trained and skilled personnel in the rural areas. Therefore, rural people have to rush to the urban health care centres. This becomes worse in the absence of proper roads and other cost-effective means of transportation.
d. Lack of Modern Techniques and Facilities:The government health centres are usually devoid of the basic facilities like blood testing, X-rays, etc. These centres lack modern techniques and medical facilities like, CT-scan, sonography, etc. In order to avail these services, people need to depend on the private hospitals that charge exorbitant fees.
e. Privatisation: The inability of the government to provide sufficient health care centres and other medical facilities paved the way for the private sector to step in. The private sector is governed by price signals, thereby, catering to the need of the higher income group, leaving the low income group and the poor at their own mercy. This is due to the privatisation of the health care sector. The private hospitals are attracting more patients than the government hospitals as the government hospitals are devoid of facilities.
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