ELKHART, Ind. (Mennonite Mission Network) – As the United States struggles with the rollout of the Affordable Care Act, hospitals in India report positive results since that nation expanded its health care coverage.
Dr. Sandeep Patonda, current medical superintendent of Dhamtari Christian Hospital, says India’s health care expansion has been good for rural communities that the hospital serves.
Dr. Kanchan Naik of Sewa Bhawan Hospital, in the village of Jagdeeshpur (also located in the state of Chhattisgarh, and about 100 miles from Dhamtari), reports observing a dramatic increase in patients receiving care. Both hospitals were established by predecessor agencies of Mennonite Mission Network.
“Patients who were harbouring their illnesses for a long time can now afford to get themselves treated,” Dr. Kanchan said. “They have gotten rid of their long term stigmas to seeking treatment due to their poverty.”
website. In 2008, India began using smart cards to provide health insurance to 33 million of its poorest households. The program is part of the government’s overall effort to provide a national health care system to India’s 60 million underserved people. Citizens in Chhattisgarh receive smart cards valued at up to 30,000 rupees ($500 U.S.) annually per family. They can seek care at any of the nation’s 12,000 participating public or private hospitals.
While these cards are issued in Chhattisgarh, coverage follows the cardholder even if they move to other parts of the country; the cards have a fingerprint identification system that contains information such as addresses, and names and photos of the head of household and dependents.
The cards are cashless and rates per approved medical procedures are fixed. Previously families would often forgo care if they could not come up with the money to pay.
“I personally believe it’s a good move by the state to reach out to the needy people,” Dr. Sandeep Patonda said. “This has surely brought awareness. Now people have become more health conscious and come forward to get treated.”
Though year to year statistics were not immediately available, Dr. Patonda said there is anecdotal evidence that the patient load of the 375-bed hospital has increased. He said Dhamtari Christian had registered more than 6,400 inpatients thus far this year. The hospital receives patients from nearly 500 nearby villages.
At Sewa Bhawan, a 50-bed hospital that serves about 3,000 inpatients annually, there has been a dramatic increase in pregnant women seeking prenatal care, said Dr. Kanchan, an Ob-Gyn doctor by training. Deliveries have increased about 50 percent, she said.
“We don’t have the numbers yet, but the maternal mortality rate and infant mortality rate will definitely come down,” she said, adding that the hospital’s income is up at an estimated 40 percent.
However, the increased workload is stretching the staff, said Dr. Kanchan, who with her husband, Dr. Tushar Naik, a surgeon, have been serving at the hospital for 25 years.
“We are falling short of nurses and doctors,” she said. “We have one junior doctor apart from the two of us.” It becomes very difficult at times to manage. We see more than 100 out–patients a day.”
Dhamtari Christian Hospital’s income has not increased dramatically, says Dr. Patonda. But, more importantly, people are receiving better health care. The hospital today is equipped with many of the latest diagnostic equipment and treatment options. It offers a 24-hour trauma and emergency room, surgery, an intensive care unit, pathology department, pediatric care/vaccination clinic, a pharmacy, dental services, and an eye clinic.
Dhamtari Christian Hospital’s roots go back to 1910, when a small clinic in Dhamtari was founded by Mennonite Board of Missions. Sewa Bhawan Hospital is a general-treatment facility established in 1928 by workers with the Commission on Overseas Mission.The hospital is now owned and operated by Emmanuel Hospital Association, an organization started in 1970 to maintain the long-term stability of 13 small Indian mission hospitals.
###
For immediate release
Mennonite Mission Network, the mission agency of Mennonite Church USA, leads, mobilizes and equips the church to participate in holistic witness to Jesus Christ in a broken world. Media may contact news@mennonitemission.net.
