Giving Compass' Take:

• In this story from India Development Review, author Dr. Chandrakant Lahariya describes the difficulties facing Indian urban healthcare and goes on to propose a replicable alternative.

• In what ways are the challenges to Indian urban health care similar to the challenges in American health care? Could the two systems borrow solutions from each other?

• To learn about the differences between private and government schools in India, click here.

The public provision of primary health services in urban India has many challenges.

The first is the shortage of government primary healthcare facilities (GPHFs). The public provision of primary health services in urban India has many challenges. The first is the shortage of government primary healthcare facilities (GPHFs)

Second, the norm for setting up U-PHCs is one for a population of 50,000. This is nearly double the norm for rural India (a rural PHC is recommended for every 30,000 people in plains and 20,000 in hilly areas) and is arguably insufficient to meet the health needs of the population.

Third, the provision of services is narrow and focused on maternal and child health (MCH). People often don’t associate GPHFs with other services, for instance, treating non-communicable diseases. They end up going to larger facilities, such as district hospitals, medical colleges, or private providers.

Fourth, the availability of providers, services, medicines, and diagnostics is often unpredictable due to a multitude of reasons including absenteeism among staff, an inadequate mix of providers based on the services that have been provisioned, and, a short supply of medicines and diagnostics.

Fifth, the standard nine to five timings of these facilities are usually in conflict with the working hours of the poor and of migrants. Attending a facility during the day may mean loss of a full day’s wages.

Sixth, existing GPHFs are situated far away from the homes of the poor. This is often because they were set up years ago on available land, well before urban settlements expanded into new areas.

Read the full article by Dr. Chandrakant Lahariya about urban healthcare and learn about a proven, replicable alternative at India Development Review