India's Healthcare Crisis by Victoria Vulitsky https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6 The need for reform, education, and better finance. en-us 2017-11-15 23:03:18 UTC 2025-11-10 15:59:01 UTC hello@padlet.com Current State of India vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/207472643
  • Life expectancy in India is only 62 years.
  • India is the third strongest economy, yet it is home to 35% of the poorest people in the world.
  • Most fatalities are caused by preventable illnesses such as malnutrition and infections from unsafe drinking water.
    • (Lovett-Scott & Prather, 2014). 
    ]]>     2017-11-15 23:09:35 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/207472643     Shanty Towns vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/207473864
  • In 2014, twenty-four percent of the population in India lived in shanty towns (“Population Living in Slums”). 
  • Millions of families live in “Make-shift cardboard constructed towns that are perfect “breeding grounds for diseases, especially infections”. 
    • (Lovett-Scott & Prather, 2014).
    ]]>     2017-11-15 23:17:57 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/207473864     Shanty Towns vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/207952461 Families have no access to electricity, clean water, toilets, and plumbing, all of which lead to sanitary issues (Lovett-Scott & Prather, 2014). 
    •  Most diseases circulating can be prevented with better infrastructure and plumbing.

    ]]>     2017-11-17 01:14:13 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/207952461     Healthcare Finance vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208376247
  •  India’s government fails to prioritize healthcare. 
  • India spends$267 per capita annually for its health care which  
    •         equates to 4.7% of their GDP  (WHO, 2015). 
    • The per capita spending in rural areas is seven times lower than urban areas.
      • Only five other countries in the world are worse off than India and none of them are strong economic powers. 
        • Burundi, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sudan, and Cambodia
    • 82% of total health expenditures come from out of pocket payments, causing a barrier to access among the poor populations. 
    (Lovett-Scott & Prather, 2014). 
    ]]>     2017-11-18 14:51:57 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208376247     Quality of Care vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208377596 Migration of Doctors
    • India has a hard time keeping doctor's due to push/pull factors.
      • Doctors are attracted to modern technology, medicine, and higher salaries in wealthier countries.
    • One million Indians die each year as a result of insufficient treatment facilities and lack of healthcare personnel.
    • 40% of primary health centers have insufficient staffing
    Sion Hospital is Mumbai’s largest medical facility which sits right near one of the largest slums in India.
    • At Sion Hospital, overwhelmed doctors once treated “…100,000 patients a month - more than 3,000 sick people a day” (Carr, 2015).
    • Quality of care decreases because doctors spend less time with patients. 
    ]]>     2017-11-18 15:08:20 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208377596     Major Health Issues vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208378282
  • Children are affected by diseases at greater rates than adults.
    •   Under-five mortality rate is 85 per 1,000 people. 
  • Acute Respiratory Infection: (Selvaraj, et al., 2014)
    • Second leading cause of death in India
    • Accounts for 2.04 million deaths per year 
    • Breastfeeding provides immunity which can reduce incidence by 30%-42%.
    • Handwashing can reduce incidence by 24%.
    • Educating families about vaccines and hygiene would reduce the mortality rate.
    • (Selvaraj, Chinnakali, Majumdar, & Krishnan, 2014). 
    ]]>     2017-11-18 15:16:26 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208378282     Diseases From the Lack of Sanitation vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208378551
  • Nearly 70% of families do not have toilets at home which results in 1.2 billion people defecating in the open (Chatterjee, 2016).
    • Exposure to feces can result in ingestion of “bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites that cause intestinal infection” (Water, Sanitation, Hygiene, 2014).
    • Water contamination from feces can lead to diarrheal illnesses which take 500 lives of children each day (“India Water Crisis”).
  • Slums lack proper plumbing with access to drinking water.
    • Unsafe drinking water contributes to malnutrition which takes six million lives each year (Lovett-Scott & Prather, 2014). 
    • Unsafe drinking water leads to bacterial and intestinal infections which are fatal. 
  • Women’s personal health care products are discarded on the streets and with no formal trash collection, leaving locals vulnerable to diseases and infections from the care products (Worley, 2014). 


    • ]]>     2017-11-18 15:19:43 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208378551     Solutions vickyvul https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208379729 First and foremost, the inhumane living conditions need to be examined by public health officials.
    • By emphasizing environmental safety and healthier habits many communicable diseases can be prevented
    India needs to make an attempt to keep doctors. 
    • India should encourage the accreditation of hospitals and establish an increase to the budget so that hospitals can obtain better technology.
    • People living in rural areas are more vulnerable to disease and receive less funding per capita.
      • By implementing a requirement for all medical graduates to practice for two years in rural areas, these patients will get the medical attention that they need.
      •  Also, this requirement will alleviate the workload of doctors in rural areas.
    • Telemedicine:
      • Telemedicine would allow doctors in different parts of the country to help Indian doctors treat patients more effectively with the resources that they have. 
    ]]>     2017-11-18 15:31:39 UTC https://padlet.com/vickyvul/kbxuu596dso6/wish/208379729