Planning for Health System Development

7.0 CONCLUSIONS

Health is as important for survival as the other three essentials - food, clothing, shelter. A relaxed way of life is characteristic of the State and should be preserved with care and without the impediments of ill health. The proposals chalked out can be adopted for improving accessibility to health services for the resident Goan. Improving the Health System denotes an integrated improvement of the sector. A multisectoral approach would mean road networks are developed by the roads department, water lines by the water works department, communication lines by the telecom department, etc. with one of the parameters for prioritisation being the health system development which would lead to Integrated development and thus efficient utilisation of resources. Equally important is that revenue earned by other sectors must be put into the health sector either directly in terms of money or indirectly in terms of developing facilities or resources within that sector for their health benefits.

The addition of mobile facilities and upgrading and adding primary care facilities brings the health system to the people in need rather than forcing them to the system. Operations and manpower management could be improved with focused and controlled implementation of the proposals. The efficiency of the system depends on the efficiency of the people who serve and who are being served, and so awareness and education is necessary both for the layperson and the health worker. This awareness can be created through a participatory approach where a community comes together and works for its betterment contributing in cash or kind, learning more about itself in the process and developing a sense of belonging within itself.

The participatory approach can be used to generate funding for the physical development of the health system as well along with the conventional sources of State budgets and service pricing mechanisms. Resources at grassroot level can and must be mobilised internally with all the instruments available at the disposal of the PRIs - bonds, lotteries, borrowing from financial institutions, renting out or leasing wasted wastelands etc. With comprehensive development in this sector, the people achieve a better standard of living.

Taken the proposals to be implemented, assured the political will of the government, given the full participatory support of the people, the plan will definitely benefit the cause of such people of Goa who have waited for long for basic health facilities.

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Quais Fatehi, 2001