What is Health?
Health means our ability to remain free of illness and injuries. It refers to both mental and physical health. A healthy body is able to operate and function freely and efficiently. Good health makes us appreciate life more.
Healthcare in India:
(i) India has the largest number of medical colleges in the world and is among the largest producer of doctors.
(ii) India is the fourth largest producer of medicines in the world.
(iii) Most doctors settle in urban areas, while people in rural areas have to travel long distance for medical facilities.
(iv) About 5 lakh people die from tuberculosis every year, while 2 million cases of malaria are reported every year.
(v) Healthcare facilities have grown.
(vi) India gets a large number of medical tourists in the world. They come to avail good quality medical facilities.
(vii) We are not able to provide good clean drinking water to all. Hence, many people suffer from communicable water-borne diseases.
(viii) Half of the children in India do not get adequate food and are undernourished.
Private and Public Healthcare:
(i) Healthcare is divided into two categories: Public health services and private health services.
- Public health services are a chain of health centres and hospitals run by the government.
- One important aspect of public health is that it is meant to provide quality healthcare services either free or at low cost so that even the poor can seek treatment.
- At the village level, there are health centres where there is usually a nurse and a village health worker. They are trained in dealing with common illnesses and work under the supervision of doctors at the Primary Health Centre (PHC). Such a centre covers many villages in a rural area. At the district level is the District Hospital that also supervises all the health centres. Large cities have many government hospitals.
- Another important function of public health is to take action to prevent the spread of diseases such as TB, malaria, jaundice, cholera, etc.
- According to our Constitution, it is the primary duty of the government to ensure the welfare of the people and provide health care facilities to all. The government must safeguard the Right to Life of every person.
- Private health services are not owned or controlled by the government. People have to pay a lot of money for every service that they use.
- A large number of doctors run their own private clinics. In the rural areas, one finds Registered Medical Practitioners (RMPs). Urban areas have large number of doctors, many of them providing specialised services. There are hospitals and nursing homes that are privately owned. There are many laboratories that do tests and offer special facilities such as X-ray, ultrasound, etc. There are also shops from where we buy medicines.
Healthcare and Equality:
(i) In India, private health services are increasing but public health services are not. As cost of these private services is high, many people cannot afford them.
(ii) Private services sometime encourage practices which are unethical. Barely 20% of the Indian population can afford medicines that they require during an illness.
(iii) It is the responsibility of the government to provide quality healthcare services to all its citizens, especially the poor and the disadvantaged.
(iv) In 1996, the Kerala government made some major changes in the state.
- Forty per cent of the entire state budget was given to panchayats. They could plan and provide for their requirements.
- This made it possible for a village to make sure that proper planning was done for water, food, women’s development and education.
- Water supply schemes were checked, the working of schools and anganwadis was ensured and specific problems of the village were taken up. Health centres were also improved.
(v) The best example of healthcare comes from Costa Rica where the government provides for adequate healthcare to people.
- Several years ago, Costa Rica took a very important decision and decided not to have an army. This helped the Costa Rican government to spend the money that the army would have used, on health, education and other basic needs of the people.
- The Costa Rican government believes that a country has to be healthy for its development and pays a lot of attention to the health of its people. The Costa Rican government provides basic services and amenities to all Costa Ricans. For example, it provides safe drinking water, sanitation, nutrition and housing.
For More :-
CBSE
Class–VII | CHAPTER – 1 Integers | NMMS
Revision Notes à Click
Here
Tracing
Changes Through a Thousand Years | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 | Social à Click
Here
New
Kings and Kingdoms | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 | Social à Click Here
The
Delhi Sultanate | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
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The
Mughal Empire | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Tribes
Nomads and Settled Communities | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
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Devotional
Paths to the Divine | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
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The
Making of Regional Cultures | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
Here
Eighteenth
Century Political Formations | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
Here
Environment
| NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
Here
Inside
Our Earth | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Our
Changing Earth | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Air |
NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Water
| NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Human
Environment Interactions the Tropical | NMMS Revison Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
Here
Life
in the Deserts | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
On
Equality | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
How
the State Government Works | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
Here
Role
of the Government in Health | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
Here
Growing
up as Boys and Girls | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click
Here
Women
Change the World | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Understanding
Media | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Markets
Around Us | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
A
Shirt in the Market | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Social à Click Here
Nutrition
in Plants | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
Nutrition
in Animals | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
Heat |
NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click
Here
Acids
Bases And Salts | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
Physical
And Chemical Changes | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click
Here
Respiration
In Organisms | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
Transportation
in Animals and Plants | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click
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Force
and Pressure | NMMS Quick Revision Notes
| Class: 8 Physics Ã
Click Here
Reproduction
In Plants | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
Motion
And Time | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
Electric
Current and its Effects | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click
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Light
| NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
Waste
Water Story | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 7 Science à Click Here
How
When and Where | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click
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From
Trade to Territory | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click Here
Ruling
the Countryside | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click Here
Tribals
Dikus and Vision of Golden Age | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click
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When
People Rebel | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click Here
Weavers
Iron Smelters and Factory Owners | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click
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Civilising
the Native Educating the Nation | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click
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Women
Caste and Reform | NMMS Revision Notes | Class 8 Social à Click Here
