Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Tuesday, Jul 31, 2007
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Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Tuesday, Jul 31, 2007 ePaper |
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Industry & Economy
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Health Columns - Random Walk States - Kerala Fear of fever
As vector-borne diseases such as chikungunya continue to spread through Kerala, the onus is on the State Government to return Kerala to its past glory in public health.
K.G. Kumar As fever persisted in the State, especially in districts such as Pathanamthitta, rumours began doing the rounds of some strange plague-like disease spreading through Kerala. Outbreaks of large unsightly boils and sores in patients gave rise to a new disease – “tomato fever”. Health Minister P.K. Sreemathy was quick to allay fears of any “mysterious” fever. She said there was no reason to disbelieve the statement of the experts and scientists of the country that chikungunya was the cause of the fever. Chikungunya is a viral disease spread by the bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which usually breeds in fresh water. The first outbreak of the disease was recorded in Reunion Island. In Swahili, the most widely spoken language of sub-Saharan Africa, “chikungunya” means “that which makes one bend”. Patients often crouch and lie prostrate due to arthralgia (pain in the joints). Though the disease is self-limiting, secondary infections caused by chikungunya can prove fatal. What is most worrisome about the entire occurrence – it is no longer an “episode” – is that it should be occurring in a State like Kerala, which Nobel laureate Amartya Sen once held up as a “shining example” of the successful public delivery of public health care and basic educational facilities despite being constrained by poor economic growth and low per capita income. Irony
Ironically enough, that boast no longer seems to hold water. Kerala seems to have lost its once-firm grip on provision and delivery of accessible public health. Public health is the branch of medicine concerned with the prevention and control of disease and disability, and the promotion of physical and mental health of the population. From that point of view, Kerala seems to be failing in its duty to deliver the highest standards of public health. Health activist and doctor C.R. Soman, Chairman of Health Action by the People, says, “Kerala is on the brink of a public health crisis. The State, which sets an example for the rest of India and Third World countries in providing primary healthcare, now gropes in the dark and is fast losing the edge.” Soman points to a reason for this sorry situation: “The State health department is no longer the prime mover of health development. With less than a third of physicians, beds and institutions under the government, the state health services department is a mute spectator to the rapid decay of health services, particularly primary healthcare. Many primary health centers are unmanned. Drug procurement and distribution systems are outmoded and complaints of drug unavailability appear frequently in the media.” With the State seemingly paralysed in delivering such elementary public healthcare, the onus is surely on the State Government to pull up its socks and get to work to return Kerala to its past glory. The writer can be contacted at kgkumar@gmail.com
More Stories on : Health | Random Walk | Kerala
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