Assam is committed to reduce out-of-pocket expenditure and make healthcare affordable. Hence, the Chief Minister’s Free Diagnostics Services, a PPP model with HLL Lifecare Ltd was introduced. Till date over 2 million patients have availed free services, including high end investigations like CT scan, says J V N Subramanyam, IAS, Mission Director, NHM, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Assam, in conversation with Elets News Network (ENN).
Q How would you describe Assam’s healthcare delivery system in terms of quality, accessibility and affordability?
With about 3.4 crore population, Assam is poised in a unique context both demographically and topographically and is the largest State with 68.4% population of the country’s northeastern region. There are about 26 Scheduled Tribes and 22 Scheduled Castes. One must look at Assam’s healthcare delivery system in this context. In context of accessibility, quality of services and affordability, we need to look at various factors:
Accessibility: Difficult geographical terrain with hard to reach riverine/ Char areas, tea garden areas, hilly and forest areas spread across the State are the major accessibility issues for healthcare delivery system in the State.
a) Tea garden areas: About 20% of Assam’s population belongs to the tea growing communities. They are one of the most backward and exploited communities in Assam. Many studies revealed that Assam is facing a very high Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) among the districts with the high tea garden population, the MMR is very high. As per survey conducted by Regional Resource Centre for North Eastern States (RRC-NE), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India, only 428 (57%) tea gardens have functional hospital out of total 758 tea gardens surveyed. Similarly, only 324 (49.9%) have Medical Officer (Allopathic) out of total 649 tea garden hospitals and another 47(7%) running with Visiting Medical Officer. The study revealed poor status of health infrastructure, availability of doctor, nurses and paramedics and healthcare services in the tea garden areas. Proper implementation of Plantation Labour Act, 1951 in the large number of tea gardens in the state remains a challenge.
This story is from the February 2019 edition of eHEALTH.
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This story is from the February 2019 edition of eHEALTH.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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