Health and wellness centres which are the primary care arm of Ayushman Bharat are making rapid progress
In what is expected to give a big push to preventive and promotive healthcare in the country, India already has 20,622 health and wellness centres (HWCs) in place. HWCs constitute the primary care arm of Ayushman Bharat, the flagship health programme of the NDA government. The first HWC was inaugurated by prime minister Narendra Modi in Chhattisgarh in April last year.
HWCs are an attempt, for the first time, to expand primary healthcare beyond its traditional zone of maternal and child health which basically meant obstetric care and vaccinations till now. The plan is to set up 1,53,000 HWCs across the country that will provide comprehensive maternal health care services at sites equipped to service as “delivery point”, neonatal and infant health care services, childhood and adolescent health care, contraceptive services, reproductive health care, management of communicable diseases, screening and comprehensive management of non-communicable diseases, basic ophthalmic care services, basic ENT care, screening and basic management of mental health ailments, basic dental health and geriatric health care.
So far, 1.63 crore people have been screened for hypertension and 1.43 Crore for diabetes. The two diseases have been found to have an incidence of 8% and 11% respectively
Of particular interest not just to doctors in India but also the international public health community is the element of screening for non-communicable diseases built into the HWC architecture. According to officials from the ministry of health, so far, 1.63 crore people have been screened for hypertension and 1.43 Crore for diabetes. The two diseases have been found to have an incidence of 8% and 11% respectively. About 79 Lakh people have been screened for Oral Cancer, 54 Lakh for breast cancer and 37.5 Lakh for cervical cancer. India is undergoing an epidemiological shift with infectious diseases being increasingly replaced by non-communicable ones.
Also in place is a National Medical College Network of 50 colleges, each with a a catchment area of HWCs to mentor and give tele-consultation services. Some states like Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Telanagana have already started their Tele-consultation services.
