Private doctors in the State are catering to the needs of 85.85% outpatients and the government sector’s share is just 14.15%.
In neighbouring Odisha, government hospitals are catering to the needs of 72.25% outpatients and only 27.75% outpatients approach private doctors for treatment, according to the data of the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) 71st round.
The Expert Committee on Health Reforms, headed by former Union Health Secretary K. Sujatha Rao, made a slew of recommendations to increase the share of public healthcare in A.P. to at least 50% by establishing Village Health Clinics and issuing health cards.
Odisha’s achievement
As per the NSSO data, the government health machinery in the other South Indian States seems to be more efficient and is catering to the needs of larger percentage of outpatients.
In Tamil Nadu, the government hospitals are attending on 34.45% outpatients. The percentage of outpatients being treated in Kerala is 33.65 and Karnataka 21.35. The achievement of Odisha in this regard is considered remarkable.
Andhra Pradesh has the dubious distinction of standing third from the bottom. Haryana, which is in the last place, caters to only 9.85% outpatients. Bihar, which caters to 13.90% outpatients, stands second from the bottom.
An important recommendation of the expert committee was revamping the primary healthcare that had been “dismembered” with several of its functions being entrusted to the private players.
The committee had urged the government to bring back a system where services were integrated and the provision of healthcare from the village level to the medical college hospital level was seamless. The committee had recommended establishment of Village Health Clinics (VHCs) to work in sync with government flagship programme (Village Secretariats) of taking governance to the people.
The VHCs should have trained workers who would integrate AYUSH with Allopathic medicines to treat minor ailments, stabilise the very sick and refer them to the nearest public health and wellness clinic, the committee had observed.
Health cards
The committee also recommended that every household be issued health card with demographic profile and details of existing vulnerabilities. The objective was to help the PHC doctors and paramedics to identify those who needed more attention. In this system, the health centre would be responsible for the health and well-being of assigned households.
