 |
Kathmandu Saturday October 06, 2001 Ashwin 20, 2058.
|
Unenviable distinction
The health sector has always been a matter of
serious concern. But successive governments have failed to come up with a radical
approach, which would have brought health for all closer to reality. The neonatal
mortality rate has increased to fifty out of every thousand. Maternal mortality in this
country is the highest in the South Asia subcontinent. Every summer preventable diseases
claim thousands of lives, crippling daily economic activity. And every year a total of
over fifty thousand people develop tuberculosis in this country. The reasons for this
sorry state are poor sanitation, poor medical facilities and illiteracy, besides
debilitating poverty in rural Nepal. This raises a host of questions. What have successive
governments done to improve the quality of life of the poor? Is access to health not a
fundamental right of all? Doesn’t the poor health policy of the government undermine
other rights as well? The political parties, particularly the NC, the RPP and UML, have
failed to recognize this as a major problem.
A study on the ‘State of the
world’s new borns’, conducted by Save the Children US, underlines that the
mortality rate of newborn babies has placed this country on the top in the subcontinent
and fourth place in the world. This is an unenviable distinction. The survey has
highlighted just how effectively the government has implemented health policies and
programmes. It also projects negligence and
a lack of seriousness on the government’s part towards improving public health. Had
there been some measures taken that aimed at reducing the infant mortality rate in this
country, the overall picture would have been much better than what it is today. Low birth
weight, infection, birth asphyxia and congenital anomalies are other factors that have led
to a high neonatal mortality rate in this country. This apart, ninety percent of child
births take place in the home with the help of family or neighbours, instead of at
hospitals.
The annual budget allocated for the health
sector does not reach rural Nepal. Part of the budget is misdirected by parliamentarians
for their personal benefit, and part of it by bureaucrats, including medical personnel
manning the primary health centres or district hospitals. The medicines allocated for
health centres and hospitals end up in private clinics, pharmacies and nursing homes. This
is the main reason why district hospitals or primary health centres remain without
medicines and medical personnel throughout the year. Besides, the doctors working at
state-run hospitals and health centres prefer to work in Kathmandu rather than in rural
Nepal. The government must recognize that health is as important as education for the
public weal. It cannot ignore this by citing poverty and illiteracy. It must educate the
poor, improve their quality of living and reduce neonatal mortality.
Other Stories
|
