Mauritius, being a welfare state, has to make sure that all the inhabitants are living in good conditions. The most important that has to be taken into consideration is the health of the people. Health is a greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship, said Buddha. The role of the Ministry of Health is to ensure that all the medical facilities are available to the population and improvements are being made as it is the main objective of the health system and there have been progressions in the health system over the past decades.
Access to health services is easy in Mauritius. Government hospitals were opened to serve the people. Millions of rupees are spent each year in the health sector. Medical services available to the population by the government are free. No money is charged for any treatment and it also applies for the medicines given plus the stay and the food at the hospitals. Long ago, high qualified doctors were made to come to carry out complicated operations. Today, good qualified doctors are employed and these operations are made in the country itself. There was also a lack of necessary equipment to carry out operations.
It is no longer a trouble as it was made available in the hospitals. A new range of high tech diagnosis facilities such CT scan, MRI and nuclear medicine are provided. Developments in treatment such as major expansion in heart surgery, transplant surgery, cobalt radiotherapy for cancers and more up-to-date equipment for operation theatres and intensive care units were made. A huge amount of money is needed in order to go and get the necessary treatment abroad. But the government is giving a helping hand by paying part of the fees of those who can’t afford.
In order to enjoy a healthy life, one should be taken care of since the very beginning of life. A baby is a very delicate and fragile creature. He should be given special care. And in order to for him to grow up healthily the first factor that should be taken into consideration is the mother. The latter should take care of herself carefully if she wants her baby to be a healthy person and she is guided by the doctors to know what should be done or not. Many services are offered in the hospitals for the pregnant women. The latter are made to come on regular basis for their check-ups.
With the latest technologies in hands, it is now possible to know the health state of the baby in the womb itself. Even after the baby is born special care is given to both mother and baby. Regular check-ups and vaccinations are given to the babies during specific intervals. Most child deaths are caused by infectious diseases like diarrhoea, polio, measles and other diseases which can be cure by immunization. In Mauritius, vaccination and baby health care services are free and have contributes in decreasing the number of child deaths.
In 2009, over 90% of children aged less than 1 year were immunized against measles in public hospitals. Throughout the world, everyday, more than 1,000 women die in pregnancy; the majority of these deaths are due to lack of skilled health personnel at the time of birth. In Mauritius, almost all of the births are attended by skilled health personnel. In order to ensure that the baby will grow into a healthy adolescent, vaccination is not stopped at one year old but also on both the first year and last year of primary school for prevention against any diseases which might erupt.
Plus, for the elderly and disabled there was an anti-vaccination campaign 2013. It is only since 2010 that all elderly people aged above 60 years and over are vaccinated. The future prosperity of the country is reliable on the health of the people. The government is making sure that the population is fit and fine. There is a saying which tells us that prevention is better than cure. It is more efficient for a person to spend money on more on prevention than on huge hospitals bills. The government is providing services like ‘Caravanes de Sante’.
Nowadays, people don’t have time for themselves nor they are taking care of their health. Busy with loads of work, the people most of the time consume fast food, which have a negative impact on their health. Moreover, the amount of smokers and alcoholic are increasing at a high rate in the country. People are starting to smoke at very young age and are also becoming drug addicts. Regardless of the fact excessive alcohol is harmful, drugs and smoking kill, the people are still not leaving that bad habit.
In order to create awareness, increases knowledge, changes attitudes and moves eople to change their behaviour and to adopt a healthier lifestyle, sensitisation campaigns like Anti-Smoking, Anti-Alcohols, having a balanced diet and practising exercises daily are being held. Whether on tv, radio or magazines, we are being made conscious about the importance of our health. . Apart from having the public sector, we also have a well established private sector The private sector absorbs 32% of the total expenditure on health in the country. . In a year, the private sector has 27, 000 admissions for in-patient treatment, undertakes 13,000 surgical operations and delivers over 2,000 babies.
Some people choose private hospitals instead of public hospitals due to better service quality and admission procedures. There are reliable doctors and nursing officers and their attitude are courteous and they are more hospitable and are ready to help. The most important factor is that there is better medical treatment as the doctors are competent. The patients can choose their doctors of their choices for the treatment. Unfortunately it costs a lot of money to get treated in a clinic. Million of rupees are needed for operations and surgeries. Only the wealthy persons will be able to get admitted to clinics.
Doctors may work in public hospitals or have their own cabinet of consultation. Fees, of their choice, are charged for consultations. They must expose their all their certificates in their waiting room. We also note the presence of pharmacies around the island which form part of the private sector too. It is another business which makes a lot of money as the medicines sold are expensive. Critics: Although hospitals are easily accessible, hospitals care and treatment are free and are better equipped to deal with emergencies, they are still some flaws.
In order to be consulted by a doctor one must wait for a long time. In addition, some people complaint about the unprofessional attitude of some staff members. It is report that nurses often scold at old women. Sometimes there are few doctors who are on duty and they have to work the entire day which results in tiredness and often they made wrong diagnosis. There had been cases where wrong diagnosis of doctors led to the death of people by prescribing the wrong medicine. Frequently, people protest about getting the repetitive medicines each time, like the famous Panadol pills.
Moreover, there is a lack of hygiene and sanitation in hospitals. Also, the food is criticised. It is said it is of not good quality. Doctors are known for saving lots of lives. But, he can kill too. Some doctors that are employed in our hospitals are sometimes incompetent and are not highly qualified. Due to their carelessness and negligence, young mothers and babies have lost their lives. There should be a severe selection among doctors and only the best qualified ones should be allowed to study medicines.
And sanctions should be taken against those who are not fulfilling his/her duty like they should. SAMU professionals are also being criticised by the public for their slowness. They sometimes arrive late on the scene of an accident or a true medical emergency. They also lack staffs, having only a centralised doctor working 24 hour guard at the medical emergency numbere114 and who directs the teams of SAMU field. Conclusion: The general state of health of the population in Mauritius is good and has been improving little by little over the past decades.
It is free from Malaria outbreak unlike other countries. There has been a notice on the increase of expectation of life in the last thirty years and there has been a decline in the rate of infant mortality, from 64 to 14 deaths in the first year of life for every 1000 live born babies. But still, the country faces growing problems of diseases like heart disease, diabetes, stroke, cancer, tobacco and alcohol related diseases and mental illness. This shows that there are still some improvements to be carried out. The Ministry of Health should propagate more awareness around the island.
The people should be encouraged to practise more physical education. More fitness centres should open their doors in the localities and the people should find some free time to take care of themselves. Lately there has been an increase in the amount accidents on the roads. This implies that there should be more SAMU available for the rescue of the injured persons. Overall, Mauritius has a high standard among African countries. Despite having some imperfections which can be fixed, the Mauritian people cannot really have any complaint against the health system available in the country.