Vol3. wRAP #5: The State of the Nation's Health || When Poetry Meets Healthcare News

Time flies and sometimes leaves you stranded at airports and stations.

So you end up carrying the extra baggage of unfulfilled expectations.

When you almost catch up, some other sort of block shows up - like mental,

Writers will tell you that’s when people can tend to get just a little judgemental.

?

But let’s put that behind us, let’s focus on the here and now.

Yesterday, on the world stage, India took her 76th birthday bow!

This year, India also became the fifth-largest economy in the world.

The nation dreamed of bigger and better things as the flag unfurled!

?

The destiny we imagine is of global leadership, innovation, and greater wealth.

To succeed, the road to them must be paved with better national health. ?

?

Public Health Gains, Challenges Remain…

The Covid pandemic exposed some gaps in our health performance.

Filling some of those potholes should get the highest importance.

The 2021 Global Health System Index ranked us 66th out of 195 countries.

In many areas, we may just be missing the forest by focusing on the trees.

?

On many health indicators, there have been extraordinary strides.

Infant and maternal mortality, and longevity gains have bridged all divides!

Challenges remain in some segments, like vaccine coverage and penetration.

For both children and adults, the goal should be to maximize immunization.

?

The government’s Covid vaccination drive gave the system an additional push.

Now we should build on that and realize the goals of Mission Indradhanush.

?

Access and Availability: Creating the Sustainability…

The challenge of meeting the healthcare needs of a billion people is hard.

All the standard rules break down, and no comparison works in this regard.

From hospital beds to healthcare providers, the list is extremely long.

The scale of the problem makes you weak in the knees, even if you are very strong.

?

Yet, at the same time, India is a leading medical tourism destination.

It is the quality of its healthcare, not the cost that makes it a sensation.

Paradoxically, for the many millions of India, that access is harder to get.

Living in cities with means at our disposal, that’s something we easily forget!

?

“Infrastructure” has been India’s big story, with successes of every conceivable type.

When it comes to medical systems infrastructure, can we re-create this hype?

Infectious Diseases! It Never Ceases…

Like many people, some diseases can really be very stubborn.

They stick around, resist treatment and make your stomach churn!

This becomes increasingly prevalent - the older a person gets.

Taking medicines is harder with age: the more easily one forgets.

?

Medical research is breaking through; mortality is getting much lower.

New vaccines, and better treatment options are working, if a little slower.

New risks are also emerging, which experts attribute to climate change .

That calls for renewed vigilance, surveillance, and for knowledge exchange.

?

We did win the battle of the Covid pandemic, but the war is still being fought.

In the case of TB therapy, for example, more rigorous adherence will have to be taught.

?

It’s the Lifestyle that Can be Hostile…

A big concern: the non-communicable disease (NCD) problem is getting bigger .

This is the one dimension across India that certainly does not cut a healthy figure.

The challenge here is not one of health systems or a lack of needed resources.

It’s about individual responsibility, personal choices, and a different set of forces.

?

The economic cost of NCDs for our country is incredibly high .

To pay the price in lives lost and family suffering, there’s no reason why.

During the pandemic, therapy for the major NCDs took a back seat .

We must put the attention back on them , and once again turn on the heat.

?

Addressing the NCD ‘pandemic’ will require action along several dimensions .

That may require reimagining many of our present modes and conventions.

?

Digital Health: Making Progress by Stealth…

Preventive medicine, diagnostics, and new therapies are now familiar as friends.

The healthcare spectrum has widened considerably, spreading at both ends.

From wellness, appropriate diets, and yoga to a calendar of disease screening,

Taking care of yourself is now a convenience: there’s an app for almost everything!

?

Necessity, it has been said, is the mother of invention, giving it wings.

The Covid response inspired a range of innovation , among many other things!

From telemedicine to galvanising pharmaceutical manufacturing,

The healthcare industry became an ecosystem , bouncing on springs.

?

The National Digital Health Mission has expanded access, making a big difference.

We now have the potential to overcome our biggest challenge: therapy adherence!

End Note

The nation stands at the cusp of an important moment, an inflection point.

We will have to build new highways, repair, and strengthen broken joints.

?

And if ever there have been doubts, dispel them: the Wrap is back.

Until next time, stay safe, and be well: get yourself a coffee, but not a snack.

?

?