Soon, Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs) set up under Ayushman Bharat to provide preventive, promotive, rehabilitative, and curative care will expand their services to offer elderly and palliative healthcare services. Basic oral health care and care for common ophthalmic and ENT problems apart from screening and basic management of mental health ailments will be available at these centres.
Mid-level healthcare provider and community health workers, who will be trained to offer these services, will also facilitate tele-consultation with a doctor at the nearest Primary Health Centre for those who require specific treatment, said Vikas Sheel, Union Joint Secretary (Policy), here on Monday.
Mr. Sheel, who looks after National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme and Ayushman Bharat-HWC Programmes, said now the HWCs are providing preventive, promotive, rehabilitative and curative care for a range of services encompassing reproductive and child health services, communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases, and reproductive health care services.
The Health Ministry had set itself a target of establishing 1.5 lakh HWCs by 2022 and nearly 9,000 of these will be from Karnataka. As of now, 1,930 sub-centres in Karnataka have been transformed into HWCs and 364 of these are in urban areas, including Bengaluru, he said. The official said nearly 40,000 of the 1.5 lakh proposed will become functional by the end of March. “This April will mark the second anniversary of HWC programme under Ayushman Bharat. These transformed centres are aimed at providing free and accessible comprehensive primary healthcare, focusing on bringing preventive and promotive care closer to the community,” he said.
The primary healthcare team at these AB-HWCs have also focussed on the screening of communicable diseases such as Tuberculosis and Leprosy, he asserted.
Preventive healthcare through wellness activities is the important feature of these AB-HWCs and more focus is being given on lifestyle changes for creating behavioural changes in the communities. “Regular sessions of yoga and other physical activities at these AB-HWCs have attracted the community. Over seven lakh wellness and yoga sessions have been conducted so far,” Mr Sheel said.
Lauding Karnataka, he said: “In addition to non-communicable disease screenings, Karnataka prioritised the need for community well-being by conducting more than 40,000 wellness as well as yoga activities.”
OPTIONAL CUT: Among the other States with well-performing HWCs are Tamil Nadu, Manipur, Gujarat, and Kerala. As per the latest data updated from the States in the AB-HWC Portal managed by the Union Ministry, as many as 30,690 HWCs are functional across India as of February 2020.
Food safety testing kits
The Union Ministry will soon provide food safety testing kits to all Health and Wellness centres designed by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). “These kits will enable anybody to test food at the centres. The idea is to create awareness about safe eating and also act as a deterrent to retailers,” said Vikas Sheel, Union Joint Secretary (Policy).
Payment for ASHAs only incentive-based, cannot be given salaries
Replying to queries as to why Accredited Social Health Activists cannot be given fixed salaries when their responsibilities are increasing by the day, Vikas Sheel, Union Joint Secretary (Policy), said their payment is incentive-based. “The Health Ministry cannot give them salaries as their service is part time and voluntary. They are not employees. The States are more than welcome to supplement the incentives from their (States) resources,” he said.
