Primary health care is an essential aspect for every individual in the world. It should be the foremost thing in improving the public health landscape by preventing illness and maintaining good health. As the saying goes, prevention is better than cure; primary health care focuses on preventing illnesses rather than just treating them. It’s the one-stop solution for people, whether one is starting to feel weird in their body or have questions to ask the doctor. One can take advantage of primary health care not just when they are sick or injured; even a healthy adult can see a primary care provider for regular checks to manage their health.
As it is the first point of contact with health services and access entry into the entire health system, primary healthcare is linked to better health outcomes and reduced mortality. India, as the 2nd most populous country, has to deal with accessing enough health resources and primary healthcare providers so every citizen can have the right to health improvement and equal service at affordable healthcare pricing structure availability.
However, with support from local and private sector organisations, skills entrepreneurs, and global organisations, India has seen many successful healthcare sector improvements and is continuing to evolve. Let’s get to know how the concept of primary health care developed by WHO helps with disease prevention and control.
What defines primary healthcare?
Primary healthcare is defined as identifying social, economic and environmental determinants which meet one’s everyday healthcare requirements, conducting regular check-ups with a family doctor or visiting low-income health clinics. Primary health care in India mostly involves healthcare centres offering professional medical care for individuals directly in their locality or community.
Unless they can’t be treated, patients are shifted to more advanced hospital-based care. There the patients can see general specialists and super specialists to cure the disease and prevent further severity. Hence, primary healthcare is a crucial aspect of a nation’s public health system. It also impacts the socioeconomic development of the community. Let’s get to know why it’s important to improve primary healthcare facilities for disease prevention.
Access to various health services
With primary health care, you can get increased access to various health services. It is particularly necessary for people living in remote areas who don’t have any means to access healthcare services. The primary healthcare providers are available here to understand and learn about their health or any other specific health issue they might be experiencing. If the need arises, the healthcare provider can make a referral for more specialised care.
Improved quality care
Many studies have been done to note the effectiveness of general practices with specialist healthcare service quality. Some studies show that specialist care follows more disease-specific guidelines to tend to the patient’s health issues more carefully. They take more preventative measures and make prescription choices.
However, some studies show that treatments for diabetes or other chronic conditions are better managed with general healthcare practitioners rather than hospital-based specialised care. This is because primary health care in India focuses more on making a comprehensive approach to health, so they offer a higher overall quality of patient care for disease prevention.
Early health condition diagnosis and management
Primary healthcare practitioners can do more than just check sick people and prescribe medicine for the disease. They can recommend screening measures to do early detection of the disease, that’s essential for disease prevention. They can conduct various tests if a patient is indicative of a specific disease. It may include checking blood pressure, blood test, bowel cancer screening, breast examination, pap smears, etc. Research has shown that patients with complications with manageable health conditions are admitted to hospitals due to a lack of access to primary healthcare providers.
Rather than any specific organ or health system, primary healthcare puts great emphasis on the overall health of a person. This has a positive effect on the mortality rate and accumulates the contribution of care.
Primary healthcare providers reduce the need to get specialist care and help the patient understand their situation more thoroughly to get healthier with their relevant recommendations. India is making quality approaches to improve its primary care system across the country through technology and innovation.https://www.bloglabcity.com/