Universal health coverage means that everyone has access to the complete range of high-quality health-care services they require, when and where they need them, and without financial hardship. It encompasses the entire range of vital health services, from health promotion to prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care.
Every country has a different path to achieving UHC and deciding what to cover based on the needs of their people and the resources at hand. However, the importance of access to health services and information as a basic human right is universal.
In Jammu and Kashmir, although the healthcare facilities in the government sector have been performing better but there is still a scope of improvement. The lacunas still force people to move to the hospitals located outside J&K, which is unaffordable for many.
Every year hundreds of patients from Kashmir valley move to different hospitals in India due to lack of facilities in both government as well as private sector. This not only drains patients and people economically but also physically and mentally. Then there comes the role the role of private healthcare facilities which are still limited in Jammu and Kashmir.
Over the years many private players have tried to provide a breather to the people in the form of private health care and the Paras Hospital in Srinagar’s Sonwar area is one such unique facility that aims to transform the healthcare need of common people.
The opening of such a facility in private sector should be welcomed as we have dearth of private healthcare and most of the patient load is on govt. hospitals which remain overburdened. Of course with more the facilities there are more chances of improvement.
This means that now patients have every facility at the their door steps and they no longer have to travel to outside J&K to them themselves treated for different diseases.
Notably, many patients especially in case of heart attack and trauma who require immediate treatment in the golden hour often die due to lack of immediate treatment and such private hospitals are need of the hour in the valley.
On the other side, the opening of private hospitals will not only add to the healthcare facilities but will also provide job creation for healthcare professionals and ancillary services.
The opening of the state-of-the-art hospital it will create a new benchmark in the health care delivery and increase the affordable health care to the people.
However, alongside the opening of new hospitals it also becomes the responsibility of hospitals to get best of clinical brilliants under one roof. The hospitals should maintain same set of services as given by other hospitals in metro cities like Delhi and Mumbai.
They will have to keep socio-economic status of people in mind while delivering the services as the middle class should feel comfortable to afford such health care.
People have several limitations that should be considered. The hospitals should introduce insurance/packages or link with existing ones that would make quality healthcare accessible. Besides that they have to maintain transparency while delivering services to gain patient trust.
All people must have access to high-quality services for their health, their families and communities. To do so, skilled health workers providing quality, people-centered care; and policy-makers committed to investing in universal health coverage are essential.
Universal health coverage requires strong, people-centered health care. Good health systems are rooted in the communities they serve. They focus not only on preventing and treating disease and illness, but also on helping to improve well-being and quality of life.
