A recent article by Simon Robinson in TIME magazine highlights the abysmally poor state of health care in India today.
Some alarming statistics from the article:
* just 43.5% of young children in India are fully immunized
* only 1 in 10 Indians has any form of health insurance
* 20 million people in India fall below the poverty line every year due to debt from medical expenses
* there are 6 doctors and 8 nurses for every 10,000 Indians
As Robinson points out, the lack of basic infrastructure in India is heavily contributing to the situation. Unclean drinking water, no toilets and sewers and substandard housing are major factors in millions of Indians contracting common but deadly diseases.
However, as GiveIndia knows all too well, even a small intervention can greatly change the quality of life for those living in these conditions. One of our NGOs that works in West Bengal provides low cost sanitary latrines for families living in poverty. For just Rs4800 (US$115) a family can have a clean, safe facility that can make a big difference to their health, not to mention their dignity.
Common materials and Rs 400 (US$10) worth of labour is all it takes to build one of these latrines. The Barman family of eight had a latrine installed in their house and is happy that diarrhea and other gastro-intestinal diseases are no longer frequent visitors to their home.
It may be years or even decades before the massive problems in health care will be resolved. However, some of the big changes may come when all Indians have access to basic sanitation and clean drinking water. And each one of us can help make that a reality.
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