Public healthcare system plays critical role in Kerala flattening COVID-19 curve

Thiruvananthapuram: In a few months from now, hopefully in a few weeks, when the country pulls through the catastrophe spawned by Covid-19, Kerala might go into history as a shining global example in combating the pandemic through the best efforts and good practices. The way the LDF Government in Kerala woke up and acted fast and firm, mustering all the resources at its command, certainly deserves to be storied. However, much of the credit for its success is due to the state’s strong and resilient public healthcare system, which has come handy during the worst ever crisis in medical history.

The South Indian coastal state, which was the first to confirm a Covid-19 case to be reported  in India way back in January, has come in for lavish praise from the health  watchdogs and media within and outside the country as it has almost flattened the Corona Curve. As of mid-April, the state has reported 386 confirmed cases. Almost all of them came from abroad, mostly the Gulf countries, and the rest got infected by primary contacts. 

The state’s fatality rate of two against confirmed cases is much below the national and global mortality rate from Covid-19. The state has also marked a high recovery rate of over 37 per cent and the number of people under quarantine or home isolation has been steadily falling.  The Government, however, has refused to slacken the containment restrictions, cautioning the people that a minor slip could prove disastrous and wash off all the gains.

No one, of course, can deny that the situation is being managed ably and effectively by the LDF Government. Right from the day one the situation has been closely monitored personally by Health Minister K K Shailaja.  Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is leading the battle from the front, overseeing even the minute detail of the campaign, in his usual cool and composed manner without ever giving in to bravado. 

But what has actually provided the state a firm and reliable ground to take the battle forward is the state-run healthcare apparatus, built steadily over decades. Initially, it was feared that a full-blown pandemic might overwhelm and crash the system. This apprehension, however, receded as days went on, with the entire medical fraternity rising together to meet the emergency head on.

Over the decades, Kerala has emerged as the best-performing Indian state in social development parameters. Its universal education and healthcare systems have been the underpinnings of what came to be hailed as the “Kerala model” of development.  Even as the state has alternated between governments led by Communists and Congress since 1950s, a broad political consensus has kept unaltered this development paradigm.

Right now, the state has a strong network of government modern medicine hospitals down to the primary health centres. Though the state-run hospitals suffer from  debilities like serious shortage of bed strength , they are still the hope of millions. The Government has kept up the system with consistently increasing the budgetary support.

Committed as it is to the public sector in health and education system, the LDF Government has also introduced some complementary wellness programmes such as ‘Ardram’ to support the healthcare infrastructure through decentralised and people-centric interventions. With the outbreak of Covid-19, these schemes are also calibrated to the pandemic mitigation mission.

In the last three decades, Kerala has been confronted with recurring incidence of communicable diseases such as dengue fever, chikungunya, leptospirosis, hepatitis, H1N1 and Nippah. However localised and episodic their incidence might be, such medical emergencies have put the healthcare system to test. This has helped strengthen the disease surveillance and response mechanism of the public healthcare system.

Since 1980s, the state has been witnessing a proliferation of private hospitals, many of them run on corporate model. The heavy burden of non-communicable diseases like, hyper tension, diabetes and a host of other occupational and lifestyle health issues have helped them to flourish. As elsewhere, the private medical care is hugely expensive. Still, even economically disadvantaged sections are increasingly compelled to depend on them as many think that even if costly they would receive better treatment in private hospitals.

The private sector’s cleverly-crafted business strategy of running down public health facilities as inefficient and unreliable has worked to create this impression.

One positive outcome of Covid pandemic could be revival of people’s trust in state health facilities and programmes, which still best serve their interest in times of emergencies.