Rural India Still Has Appalling Healthcare Infrastructure: Study

Bangalore: India has witnessed a massive development in various fields over the last decade but still the country’s population which is largely based in rural areas is deprived of various health infrastructure and facilities that are easily accessed and enjoyed by their urban counterparts.

Healthcare is the only industry that still faces lot of challenges in providing equivalent services to the rural and urban Indians, according to the latest study entitled-“Understanding Healthcare Access in India: What is the Current State?,” carried out by IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics.

This study shows that the rural areas where 3/5^th of the masses in India live are still lagging behind in terms of health infrastructure. The urban dwellers that form just the 28 percent of the country’s population get the maximum share, that is, 66 percent of the country’s hospital beds. On the other hand the massive rural  population that constitute 72 percent of the entire pollution of India just gets access to one-third of the hospital beds.

Likewise, the distribution of healthcare staff like doctors, nurses and pharmacists, is highly based in urban areas and in the private sector.

The reach to any healthcare centres physically turns out to be a big task and challenge in rural areas as people travel beyond five kilometers most of the time to avail the inpatient facility. The difficulties faced by them for transportation often divert their decision and they opt for treatment that is close by and are also cost effective. This also mainly applies for patients suffering from chronic diseases.

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