Syed Fareed Uddin
National Quality Assurance Standards, India
Posters & Accepted Abstracts: Primary Health Care
Large population of India poses big challenge to the government. Providing health to a large population in varied geographical areas poses a challenge in India. Provincial governments are responsible for providing health to its population. Primary healthcare is essential health care based on the principles of equitable distribution, community participation, intersectoral coordination co-ordination using appropriate technology. India has a 3-tier system: Primary, secondary and tertiary. Primary Health Centre (PHC) is the first level of contact with the health system to promote health system to promote health, prevent illness, care for common illnesses and cater to the specific needs of the community. The basic elements of primary healthcare are: Educating the community about the prevailing health conditions and methods for prevention and control; Promotion of food supply and proper nutrition; Adequate water supply and basic sanitation; Maternal and child healthcare with family planning; Immunization against major infectious diseases; Provision of essential drugs; Rural population in India is close to 70% which makes it a more complex proposition. To benefit the rural population, Madhya Pradesh State Government took an innovative step and established the Gram Arogya Kendra at village level within the Anganwadi. Medicine stock for basic illnesses was maintained and the ANM under whose Sub Health Centre (SHC) it falls provides the ANC services to the pregnant women of the village and does the immunization of women and children and distributes the medicine. The village community receives the health services almost at their doorstep. The National Rural Health Mission made provision for delivery at SHCs for the benefit of the rural population. More urban PHCs are being established. Quality norms and assessment tools are introduced to ensure quality management of the PHCs. Annual monetary award introduced to motivate the staff. fareeduddin_bhopal@yahoo.com
