Gauri Chhabra
The rural health care system has changed dramatically over the past decade because of a general transformation of health care financing, the introduction of new technologies, and the clustering of health services into systems and networks.
Despite these changes, resources for rural health systems remain relatively insufficient. Many rural communities continue to experience shortages of physicians, and the proportion of rural hospitals under financial stress is much greater than that of urban hospitals. The health care conditions of selected rural areas compared unfavorably with the rest of the nation. The market and governmental policies have attempted to address some of these disparities by encouraging network development and telemedicine and by changing the rules for Medicare payments to providers.
Though a lot of policies and programs are being run by the Government but the success and effectiveness of these programs is questionable due to gaps in the implementation. In rural India, where the number of Primary health care centers (PHCs) is limited, 8% of the centers do not have doctors or medical staff, 39% do not have lab technicians and 18% PHCs do not even have a pharmacist.India also accounts for the largest number of maternity deaths. A majority of these are in rural areas where maternal health care is poor. Even in private sector, health care is often confined to family planning and antenatal care and do not extend to more critical services like labor and delivery, where proper medical care can save life in the case of complications.
In such a landscape, it is imperative that rural healthcare is strengthened. If you wish to have a career that is going to occupy a lot of surface area besides giving you satisfaction at the end of the day, a career in rural healthcare is one option for you.
The Need:
Due to non accessibility to public health care and low quality of health care services, a majority of people in India turn to the local private health sector as their first choice of care. If we look at the health landscape of India 92 percent of health care visits are to private providers of which 70 percent is urban population. However, private health care is expensive, often unregulated and variable in quality. Besides being unreliable for the illiterate, it is also unaffordable by low income rural folks. To control the spread of diseases and reduce the growing rates of mortality due to lack of adequate health facilities, special attention needs to be given to the health care in rural areas. The key challenges in the healthcare sector are low quality of care, poor accountability, lack of awareness, and limited access to facilities.
Expert Advice
Aruna Singh, Principal, Delhi Paramedical and Management Institute, says ” candidates can get 1 year and 2 years Diploma in Rural Health Care and become experts in this field and can practically understand every work related to this field. During the course, they learn how to manage proper medical facilities in the situation of emergency or any kind of disaster in rural areas, learn different mediums of awareness messages which can be conveyed to people as well as they also trained to take care of pregnant women’s and children during any difficulties.”
Course and Institute Cursor:
Diploma in Rural Health Care:
The eligibility for the 12th standard/HSC/ Matriculate
Colleges offering 1 year Diploma in Rural Healthcare in India:
* Delhi Paramedical and Management Institute, Delhi
* All India Institute Of Public & Physical Health Sciences, Delhi
* Ganpat Sahai Post Graduate College, Uttar Pradesh
*Gautam Buddha Government Degree College, Uttar Pradesh
* Karnataka State Open University, Karnataka
* KIIT School Of Rural Management, Orissa
M.Sc. (Rural Health)
M.Sc. Rural Health or Master of Science in Rural Health is a postgraduate medicine course. Rural Health is the interdisciplinary study of health and health care delivery in the context of a rural environment or location, etc. The duration of M.Sc. in Rural Health is mostly of two academic years but it varies from institute to institute. The Pravara Institute of Medical Sciences, Maharashtra offers a two year course divided into four semesters.. The degree course is available both in full time and part time basis. To build a career in rural health care and to work for the needy people living in rural areas by giving all the support and care to make their life a worth it. And you can do it by joining NGO’s, Hospitals, Family Planning Departments or any other organization of health care or by doing it by yourself like by opening a clinic in rural areas and spreading the awareness of health issues and giving proper treatment which they need So you can focus on the major aspect like the most important health department where you can give them all the facilities. Bringing accountability by highlighting lapses in the health delivery process and making women aware of their rights to demand good quality of care. It starts by giving them education and discussions programs and campaigns of health care.
MBA in Healthcare and Hospital Management
For an MBA in Healthcare and Hospital Management, you should complete their B.Sc. degree under any registered University with minimum 50 % marks or equivalent grade or score in Science stream. t could be a good choice for students with a background in science, medicine, physiotherapy or other related field. Some colleges may ask for prior experience in hospitals or pharmaceutical companies.
It may appeal to those interested in the pharmaceuticals sector, government agencies, insurance organizations, hospitals and consulting firms in the health sector. As a specialist in health care management you may be required to respond to various critical management problems faced by hospitals and other agencies under the health sector. On completion of this course, you might find employment opportunities in areas of marketing, IT, human resource development, medical colleges, health insurance or the pharmaceutical industry. You may work as a health care manager, hospital administrator, pharmaceutical project manager or health care finance manager. Your responsibility as a manager may involve planning, directing and supervising day-to-day operations. Responsibilities may also include facilitating daily financial operations, budgets, and analysis.
Institutes offering Master’s degree in Health Care
* Delhi Paramedical and Management Institute The Pravara Institute of Medical Sciences, Ahmednagar.
* Symbiosis Institute of Health Sciences – Pune
* All India Institute of Medical Sciences – New Delhi
* Tata Institute of Social Sciences – Mumbai
* Indian Institute of Health Management and Research – Jaipur
* Welingkar Institute of Management – Pune & Bangalore
* Indira Gandhi National Open University offers Certificate in Rural Health-care Training (CRHT) which is of 2 months duration with eligibility criteria of 12th
Career Prospects:
Career in Rural Development and Management is not only good from salary point of view but it also brings personal satisfaction. State Governments and NGOs are the prime recruiters of Rural Health Care workers. They usually work for schemes, projects and programs designed by Government or NGOs, which are aimed at improving rural healthcare standards.
Candidates specialized in rural management will become rural managers. Professionals of this field can apply in the government sector for the job of Village Development Officer (VDO).
Rural Managers can work in rural co-operative sector, agri-business enterprises, agricultural marketing and management of agro products. Indian Institute of Rural Management which is the government-run institution also recruits candidates holding rural management degree.
Rural managers can work in all functional areas of management, such as human resource development, project implementation, general management, finance, marketing, purchase, in all segments of rural based enterprises.
As a rural manager, you can take up advisory, research & consultancy work with private & public organizations.
Nature of Work
The main role played by a rural health care practitioner, would be to create awareness about healthcare, first aid, sanitation etc. They also run awareness camps in various rural areas educating people on safety and other healthcare aids provided to them by the government and NGOS.
Summing up:
Therefore, if you wish to get into a career that ties you to the roots, get into the promising field of rural healthcare.
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