Health is a fundamental human right enshrined in Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, yet access to it remains inequitable for millions in India. Health equity, as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), is achieved when everyone has the opportunity to reach their full potential for health, free from disadvantages caused by social, economic,… Continue reading Health Equity In India- Road To Ensure Access To All
Nations face an important decision as they grapple with various healthcare concerns. The choice is between high out-of-pocket expenses for citizens or transitioning towards a model that focuses on preventive healthcare, reducing the financial burden of the population, and enhancing overall health outcomes. The Indian Constitution provides guidance on the state’s role in healthcare. While… Continue reading Healthcare Policy: Pathways to a Healthier Nation
The last decade has witnessed remarkable advancements in healthcare, promising a transformative future for India’s diverse healthcare landscape. From the rather challenging healthcare situation in the mid-20th century, there has been a notable improvement since the 1980s. India has evolved from having very few specialisations to a plethora of them, instilling confidence that it can… Continue reading Future Of Health Policy In India: Trends And Predictions
Adolescent girls in India have suffered from the highest school dropout rates, early marriages and pregnancy-related issues, along with inadequate nutrition levels. Nearly 30% of adolescent girls in India suffer from malnutrition, while about 54.2% suffer from anaemia. This is a significant increase from the NFHS-4 survey conducted between 2015-2016, which reported a prevalence of… Continue reading Improving Health and Nutrition standards among adolescent girls
The Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) was initiated in 2014 to achieve universal sanitation coverage. The cleanliness drive aimed to make citizens health-conscious by providing financial incentives for solid/liquid waste management (SLWM), toilet construction, technical assistance, and capacity building (Aijaz, 2017). The Swachh Bharat Mission has successfully executed its target of toilet construction with about 99%… Continue reading Improving the Swachh Bharat Mission through behavioural interventions
Abstract India’s population stands at 1.38 billion. It is the second-most populated country after China. In this highly populated country, suicide is the leading cause of death among young adults aged 15-24.1 Reasons for suicide are varied- failing in an exam, women facing dowry demands from in-laws, acute poverty, drug abuse, and unemployment, etc. The various… Continue reading Mental health in times of increasing economic inequality
India’s healthcare system has been plagued by multiple issues for several decades. A lack of robust healthcare infrastructure, supply-demand inefficiencies, and poor healthcare delivery mechanisms are known to be common across broad swathes of the system. The picture has been starker since the arrival of Covid-19. Questions around quality, affordability and accessibility have become even… Continue reading The Potential of Artificial Intelligence in Tackling India’s Healthcare Challenge
Abstract A Community-centered primary healthcare system, through a network of Health Wellness Centres (HWCs)1, may be equipped to manage large–scale epidemic outbreaks in Indian rural districts. HWCs, under the theme of comprehensive primary healthcare provision, have already been tasked with Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) screening, treatment initiation and follow-up, and awareness of associated risk factors through… Continue reading Health and Wellness Centres: Role in Pandemic Preparedness and Response
Unlike China or the United States, identifying India’s healthcare model can be a tedious task for researchers. Presently, India ranks 179 out of 189 countries when measured for health prioritisation, similar to nations like Haiti and Sudan that are largely dependent on aid. Consolidated public health spending (Centre and states) stands at just over a… Continue reading A Temporal Analysis of India’s Public Health Expenditure
In the wake of COVID-19, our global public discourse and policy execution measures have frantically adopted “unprecedented” into routine vocabulary. As the virus rapidly pushes globally interdependent socio-economic systems into isolation, the notion of “public” in public health is simultaneously evolving. While our pandemic-centric histories do not deliver frameworks of certainty, they leave us with… Continue reading What the Tuberculosis Foreign Aid Trajectory Tells Us about COVID-19: An Analysis
