Vinod Chandrashekhar Dixit
It is rightly said that “He who has health, has hope; and he who has hope, has everything. Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise. The first wealth is health.”
Today, there are improvements in the health sector of India by leaps and bounds compared to the 20th Century. The healthcare system in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) has made advancements, particularly in rural areas, through government initiatives and digital platforms. Kudos to PM Narendra Modi for launching the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) SEHAT scheme. The main aim behind the scheme is to extend health insurance coverage to all residents of Jammu and Kashmir. – Here the term SEHAT stands for Social, Endeavour for Health and Telemedicine.
In Jammu and Kashmir State, “Health Care Services” is much important not only for human resource development, but also for restoring the faith of the people in the institutions of governance. The initiative has significantly reduced out-of-pocket healthcare expenses and has helped make critical treatments accessible to underserved populations. It is a good drive that the government has also launched initiatives focused on maternal health, adolescent hygiene, and non-communicable disease screening, with health workers conducting outreach in both schools and rural communities.
Jammu and Kashmir has become the first among Indian states and UTs to offer free health insurance to all its residents. As per the official data, there are 4433 Govt. Health institutions at primary, secondary and tertiary levels with 6674 doctors in-position. The doctor patient ratio in the State is 1:1880 as against the recommendations of World Health Organization (WHO) of 1:1000. The doctor patient ratio at the National level is 1:2000. There are 20,306 government hospitals in the country. Rajasthan leads with 3,145 hospitals and Jammu and Kashmir stands at the number two with 2,812 hospitals. Government Hospitals provide health care free for the Indian citizens.
In Jammu and Kashmir there are also the hospitals run by the State. However the people complaint more about poor healthcare facilities. As per the statement of health minister Sakina Itoo there are around 16,000 positions vacant across Jammu and Kashmir health department. Government Medical Colleges (GMCs) across Jammu and Kashmir also face acute staff shortages.
Jammu and Kashmir State has performed relatively well in providing health and medical facilities to the people, but the level is still below the satisfaction. The state is facing a worrying rise in non-communicable diseases viz. diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular conditions. An estimated around 8% of the population suffers from diabetes, with over 10% in the pre-diabetic stage. Govt institutions need to upgrade their services at par with the upcoming private hospitals to retain the tag of major service provider in J & K. It is to be appreciated that the National Health Mission and the National Rural Health Mission are institutions set up by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and function at a national and state level with an aim of providing basic health care delivery system to all areas of Jammu, including the interiors of Jammu.
There are hospitals in India excelling in standards when compared to any hospital in the UK or the US. There are skilled surgeons and physicians in India who have made a mark in their respective fields. But the most unfortunate thing is, the services of these surgeons and physicians have not reached all sections of the population. Many villages are devoid of any health centres and if they are present, their effectiveness is limited due to the shortage or unavailability of staff, insufficient medicines, and infrastructure problems, among others. This means that for a medicine as basic as paracetamol, villagers have to walk four kilometres up and down the hilly trail.
In order for people to maintain a proper health, they should have proper health care systems. Only then people will be able to take care of their health and get treatment when they are suffering from any sort of sickness.
Author can be reached at dixitpatrakar@yahoo.in
Comments are closed.