Posts tagged Healthcare

Healthcare eludes poorer women in rural Asia Pacific

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By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 21.12.2018 (SciDev.Net): Rural women in low-income households cannot access healthcare services due to distance and financial reasons. However, overall, healthcare access has improved in 27 countries of the Asia Pacific region over the past decade, says a new joint report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Health at a Glance Asia-Pacific 2018 notes that in Nepal and the Solomon Islands, about three in four women with the lowest household income reported difficulties in accessing healthcare due to financial reasons; two in three reported having unmet care needs due to distance.

The report highlights that achieving Universal Health Coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is based on the “leave no one behind” premise.

Continue reading on SciDev.Net Asia & Pacific edition

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Good nutrition essential to reduce maternal & infant mortality

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Mohani Devi covering chhach (buttermilk) and bajre ki roti. Photo Credit: © Neena Bhandari

By Neena Bhandari

Jhakaron ki Dhani (Jodhpur, Rajasthan) 11.02.2012: In the dusty village of Jhakaron ki Dhani, 25 km from Jodhpur in western Rajasthan, early marriage and early motherhood are not uncommon. Shamu Meghwal was married at the age of 13 and her first baby was born at 15. At 25, she is the mother of four kids and has just lost her husband. Visibly anaemic, she epitomises the many young women in her community experiencing weakness, back and abdominal pain.

It is estimated that more than half of all married women in India are anaemic and one-third of them are malnourished (have a body index below normal). “These women are already at a lower health level when they get pregnant. They don’t receive proper nutrition, especially vital during pregnancy. This makes them anaemic resulting in long-term consequences on their health”, says Dr Kanta Tiwari, a known gynaecologist, who has been working in Jodhpur and surrounding areas for the past 41 years.

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