The head of the Indian Council of Medical Research and director of the National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis, Soumya Swaminathan, published an article on September 2, 2014 (updated on July 19th, 2016) titled, “Taking healthcare to India's remote tribes.” She began by deeming the mortality rates among rural tribal children unacceptable, then followed her article with the reasons for poor health and how to upscale tribals healthcare. Primary health issues amongst tribals communities are linked to basic living necessities such as food, nutrition, drinking water, sanitation, and safe housing. Research has shown that around 75% of tribal populations defecate in the open, 33% do not have access to clean drinking water, 80% of women weigh under 50 kg, and 74% of children are malnourished. With continued insanitary conditions, ignorance, lack of health education, and poor access to healthcare facilities, tribal conditions continue to worsen. In helpful efforts, primary health centers (PHC) have been established in tribal areas for every 20,000 populations and sub-centers for every 3,000, however, it is still not enough for tribals to access. Lack of transportation holds the highest percentage of concerns for these communities. For instance, if a woman who is excessively bleeding from a complication during a home-delivery, having to travel far on foot is not a realistic expectation. It can also be an inconvenience even under nonemergencies because of distance and time consumption. These tribes deal with inadequate infrastructure and inaccessibility to essential drugs and equipment, which offer nothing but a deterrence to their healthcare and access. Until the standards of living are up-scaled, these tribal communities will remain the highest percentage of marginalized citizens of the world.     

 

This particular topic stood out to me in lecture at PHRII because traditional tribal lifestyles are not something I necessarily think of every day or even at all. I live in a very innovative and modernized world in the US, so stepping outside of that and into India has really opened up my eyes to some serious health issues I didn't even think of. As a pre-medical school student looking into this topic, I would like to personally pay a visit to see how villages in these rural areas go about their everyday lives, speak with midwives and Asha's about their peoples needs and wants, as well as, in what ways they believe their communities might be open to change within healthcare. The ultimate end goal of investigating these societies is to help reduce mortality rates in any way possible. Before imposing in on their villages with our fancy medical innovations,  we must be aware that these more traditional villages. It is critical to understand that they are very set in their ways, so as a result, I believe the most important first step in this topic is to work on earning their trust and educating them on health issues, solutions, and prevention. Without education, these tribes may have very creative imaginations about our intentions. Thus, even if it takes years to get the tribal communities on board with new medical innovations and simple life alternations, a step is still a step towards a healthier lifestyle and saving a life. Thus, I chose this article because it was written by a well known medical research professional in India. The article allows me to focus my research and efforts in aiding tribes with the necessary steps to lowering their mortality rates.

 

Resources:

Swaminathan, Soumya. “Taking Healthcare to India's Remote Tribes.” The Hindu, The Hindu, 1 Sept. 2014, www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/taking-healthcare-to-indias-remote-tribes/article6370400.ece.