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PENETRATION OF DIAGNOSTICS IN RURALINDIA: NEED OFTHE HOUR
DIAGNOSTICS
Penetration of diagnostics in rural India: Need of the hour
Ankur Gupta,Associate Partner,Singhi Advisors stresses that diagnostics have indeed been available for quite some time now.Still,their penetration into rural areas has been minimal due to a lack of education and awareness among people about using these tests for prevention purposes
Diagnostics play a crucial role in the early identification of diseases and treatment. The proper diagnostic support at an early stage can save lives, maintain health status and prevent further complications. However, most rural areas do not have access to such services due to a lack of infrastructure, last-mile connectivity and subsequent scarcity of doctors. Thus, there is a need to bring diagnostics closer to rural populations through innovative methods so that more people can benefit from them.
Situation in India
As per the UN, India is the world’s second-largest country in terms of population, with over 1.4 billion people 2022 living across its vast expanse. India is home to over 17 per cent of the world’s total population, more than any other country on earth.
The country has the world's largest rural population and holds the highest number of people living in poverty in its urban areas. While it ranks third on global poverty lists, with around 6 per cent of the population living in poverty in 2021 as per World Poverty Clock, India has some unique challenges that make it difficult for medical diagnostics to penetrate rural areas. This situation must be addressed if healthcare is to improve for all Indians.
In rural India, diagnostic centres are few and far between. The population is dispersed over large distances, and the average person has to travel many miles to visit a hospital or clinic. Even those who have access to a diagnostic centre in the rural areas have no way of knowing that it exists unless they hear about it through word-of-mouth. When they get to the hospital, they will likely find long waiting lines to consult the doctors, who may not even speak their language.
Most people in rural areas don’t know what symptoms mean when it comes to their health concerns—they simply know what happens when things go out of hand. They neither have the privilege nor the knowledge to deal with the early symptoms that appear at the onset of common diseases. National Health Mission (NHM) has progressed toward providing access to free primary diagnostics. However, there’s still a long way to go as the median availability figures are as low as 19 per cent in the basic primary care facilities.
Diagnostics don’t just help doctors to identify the cause of the disease but help them single out the root disease at a stage when it can easily be treated.The importance of diagnostics cannot be underestimated in India, where most people live in rural areas where medical services are not as accessible
Role of diagnostics
Diagnostics are an essential component of the treatment, prevention and management, which can have a significant impact on: ◆ Early detection and treatment ◆ Prevention of diseases ◆ Disease management & effective cure
Lackof access to primarydiagnostics in rural India has a significant impact:
◆ Major cause of avoidable disability, from lack of or delayed treatment ◆ Cause of loss of productivity, and poverty ◆ Leading cause of deaths ◆ It results in half of the patients not being treated for racer conditions (hepatitis, hypertension, HIV, diabetes, malaria and TB)
Diagnostics don’t just help doctors to identify the cause of the disease but help them single out the root disease at a stage when it can easily be treated. The importance of diagnostics cannot be underestimated in India, where most people live in rural areas where medical services are not as accessible. In fact, diagnostics has been identified as the most critical aspect of ‘cascade of care’.
Diagnostics have indeed been available for quite some time now. Still, their penetration into rural areas has been minimal due to a lack of education and awareness among people about using these tests for prevention purposes. While, the recent pandemic has significantly contributed both in raising awareness in care seekers and care givers in the rural India inclusive ‘Bhaarat’, it will still require the government willl have to shoulder the burden and create initiatives to improve the general well-being of its citizens and to be prepared for adverse cases while giving everyone a fair chance for healthy survival.
Wayforward
In the end, I would like to emphasise that the need for diagnostic services in rural India is more than ever and if we indeed want to reduce morbidity and mortality rates across our nation, we are in dire need of adequate health care initiatives. We need to provide primary diagnostic facilities in all nooks and corners of the country, especially where such services are arduous to come by.
