The role of Indian healthcare in providing accessibility, availability, acceptability, affordability, and awareness of medical facilities to the general population of India.

Introduction

India has a huge and diverse population that is spread across the urban and rural sectors. While the Indian healthcare sector is booming in the urban areas, the rural and remote areas of the country are still struggling to receive quality medical facilities due to the low number of healthcare institutes and medical resources.

Many private and public sectors are working in collaboration with the Indian government to provide accessibility, availability, acceptability, affordability, and awareness – the five A’s of Indian healthcare to individuals staying in India regardless of their location and financial status.

Accessibility: Overcoming Geographical Barriers

Access to healthcare in India is a challenge influenced by many factors, like socioeconomic factors, lack of infrastructure, cultural factors, and regional inequalities.

Rural Healthcare Infrastructure

The National (Rural) Health Mission is working hard towards the improvement of rural healthcare infrastructure in India. However, a study conducted in 2012 in six Indian states revealed that several primary health centers did not have basic infrastructure facilities like wards, beds, drinking water facilities, toilets, regular electricity, and clean labor rooms for delivery.

Telemedicine and Mobile Clinics

Telemedicine enables patients to virtually consult doctors without the need to physically visit the doctor. Mobile clinics help people living in remote areas receive healthcare facilities without the need to travel long distances to get basic medical care. Both telemedicine and mobile clinics, therefore, help in making healthcare facilities more accessible to the rural population.

Health Camps and Outreach Programs

Several private and public sectors of India are providing healthcare camps and outreach programs to improve the health and general well-being of the Indian population regardless of their age, gender, location, or financial status.

Such camps and outreach programs work with a medical team consisting of doctors, medical support staff, and volunteers to provide medicines and healthcare facilities at minimal or no cost at all.

Ujala Cygnus Sonipat Hospital has partnered with government initiatives like Ayushman Bharat to provide primary healthcare facilities at an accessible distance to everyone in India. Additionally, Ujala Cygnus is also empanelled under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Yojna Scheme to provide improved healthcare facilities in tier 2 and tier 3 cities across India.

Ujala Cygnus has also recently launched its own healthcare app to provide facilities like teleconsultation, booking of doctor’s appointments, and delivery of medicines at the patient’s doorstep.

Availability: Ensuring Medical Resource Sufficiency

Rural India faces the challenge of having a severe shortage of skilled and trained medical support teams and medical facilities.

Skilled Healthcare Workforce

Approximately 66% of the population of India stays in the rural areas. The doctor-to-patient ratio in these areas is only 0.7 doctors per 1,000 people in comparison to the WHO or World Health Organisation average of 2.5 doctors per 1,000 people. There is a need to improve this situation to make basic healthcare facilities available to everyone.

Essential Medicines and Supplies

Many rural areas of India are deprived of the availability of medical supplies and medicines to provide basic healthcare facilities to the general public.

Medical Equipment and Technology

The availability of the latest medical technology and equipment helps in providing high-quality medical care to people. Unfortunately, its availability is restricted only to the urban sectors of the country, depriving those living in remote areas of quality healthcare services.

Ujala Cygnus has a network of 20 hospitals spread across 15 tier 2 and tier 3 Indian cities of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, and Uttarakhand. Ujala Cygnus has a team of 300+ doctors and medical specialists to make quality healthcare facilities available to everyone.

The Ujala Cygnus Model makes it possible for doctors working in rural areas to use the latest medical technology to provide quality medical care to the people living in these areas.

Acceptability: Cultural and Quality-Related Considerations

Certain cultural practices and beliefs may act as barriers to healthcare access. The beliefs, behaviors, and perceptions of different people about getting basic healthcare for themselves may be affected by the diverse cultural practices found in the different regions and communities in India.

Culturally Sensitive Care

The cultural customs, values, and the lack of health literacy could impact how people accept medical care. It is common for people to look for alternative medicines, avoid proper medical intervention, and have misconceptions about the current medical procedures due to cultural barriers.

Gender inequality, social stigma attached to certain medical conditions like STDs, reproductive or mental health issues, certain religious beliefs, and language barriers are some of the difficulties faced in providing medical facilities to people in general.

Quality Assurance and Accreditation

Many people are unsure of getting good quality healthcare facilities and therefore avoid getting the required medical care altogether. The Indian government is working towards providing high-quality care from recognized sources having accreditation to encourage more people to seek medical care.

Patient-Centric Care

The Indian healthcare system believes in treating a person with respect and dignity and involving them in all the decisions about their health. A patient-centric approach helps the doctors treat a patient not just from a medical perspective, but also from a mental, social, financial, spiritual, and emotional perspective.

The Ujala Cygnus Model primarily works towards providing healthcare facilities to the tier 2 and tier 3 cities of India to make medical care more impactful and inclusive to the community, society, and environment for long-term sustainability.

Ujala Cygnus Hospital Model also trains the local residents and makes them a part of the medical support staff, not only providing them with job opportunities but also enabling culturally sensitive medical care to the patients living in those areas.

Affordability: Making Healthcare Economically Accessible

The private sector is the main source of healthcare facilities in India. Although public hospitals offer healthcare services at a subsidized rate or even free of cost, most of these hospitals are not well-equipped, understaffed, and mostly located in urban areas, making private hospitals the major source of receiving medical services.

About 65 to 75% of the medical expenses are paid by the patients out of their own pockets, therefore, making healthcare services unaffordable for the poor section of society.

Health Insurance Schemes

An increase in the adoption of health insurance schemes helps reduce the out-of-pocket expenses for the patient, thereby encouraging them to seek medical care. The Indian government needs to work in association with the private sector to make health insurance plans available for all.

Generic Medicines and Cost Control

Generic medicines are made without repeated testing and research and therefore cost 20 to 70 % less than non-generic medicines. Using generic medicines is therefore an effective way of making medical care affordable.

Public-Private Partnerships

The private and public sectors collaborate together to finance, build, and operate healthcare institutes and facilities in a public-private partnership.

Ujala Cygnus Hospitals work on the principle of a high-volume and low-cost model to make medical care affordable to all. It rents out buildings instead of constructing hospitals to scale its model. The cost of emergency and intensive treatments at Ujala Cygnus is approximately 20% less than private hospitals.

Awareness: Promoting Health Education and Literacy

There is a general lack of awareness regarding the importance of healthcare facilities, especially in rural areas. This may be due to a poor literacy rate, low educational status, and low priority for health-related issues.

Health Promotion Campaigns

The Indian government is working towards improving health awareness by organizing health promotion campaigns in small towns, educational institutes, hospitals, etc.

Digital Health Literacy

Certain digital health models like telemedicine and video consultations, booking of doctor appointments online, etc. have become hugely popular after the pandemic. Many people from remote areas have adapted well to such models as they offer convenience.

School and Community Initiatives

The government is taking steps to work with the local community and schools to set up health models that are beneficial to children, as well as the lesser-privileged.

The doctors at Ujala Cygnus work towards methods of patient education, health promotion, and disease prevention to help increase the awareness of medical care and facilities. Additionally, the hospital conducts free medical camps in different locations every year to provide healthcare facilities to the underprivileged.

Conclusion

Accessibility, acceptability, awareness, availability, and affordability are the five A’s of the Indian healthcare system. The government is taking strong initiatives to overcome these healthcare challenges and make basic medical facilities available to all regardless of social, geographical, and financial barriers.

Source –

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