Goa, slipping to 4th from 2nd in the Health Index recently released by NITI Ayog is an indication of how the government has failed in providing proper healthcare facilities for the people. It is also a worrisome indicator in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic as healthcare has been of primary concern in the past two years, and we have seen and experienced firsthand just how inadequate the available facilities have been in times of emergencies. From lack of staff, to lack of space, to lack of facilities, to lack of equipment, Goa has seen it all as hundreds died during the second COVID-19 wave in April and May last year. It really couldn’t have been worse.
What this ranking that is for overall performance in the health sector conveys is that instead of showing an improvement in this area, Goa has fared worse than it had done in the past. The base year was 2018-19 and the reference year 2019-20. So in just a year Goa fell two spots and before one can argue that 4th place is a good enough ranking, this position is among eight small States and not all the States and Union Territories of the country. Goa was unable to hold on to its rank in this category and that is a telling comment on just how badly it has fared in health.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you can help support our journalism by adding OHeraldo as a preferred source.
It goes beyond just the ranking, as in percentage points, Goa went down by 12.5 per cent, which is also very worrying as it the State becomes the worst performer in this. Goa’s overall score was 53.68, which is just above the halfway mark. Mizoram that topped the list of small States in the health index has a score of 73.70, and it improved its performance to move from third to first. It will be a huge climb for Goa to catch up with Mizoram and it will have to start right away in improving its healthcare facilities. Kerala, which topped the larger States, has a health index score of 77.53.
Where does Goa go from here? It has to only go up, improve the healthcare services that it gives to the people. That, without any questions asked, has to be the priority. Can the State deliver?
It has for long been portrayed that Goa has a better health infrastructure in place than many other States in the country. That theory now stands questioned. Goa has the medical college, two district hospitals, urban health centres, cottage hospitals, community health centres and rural health centres that make up the government infrastructure and this when enumerated may score over other States. What about the services available in these? The ground reality is often far different from that which can be gained from data and spreadsheets. In the past Goa has been known to have better health indicators than many other States, but this may not be the case now, despite a lot of money being poured into the sector.
Do the healthcare facilities and services that are available match up to the investment that has been made in the health sector? That is a question that the government has to answer as a large amount of the taxpayers’ money has gone into creating these facilities in the State. Are they beneficial to the people? It is certain the healthcare facilities need to be improved, but that Goa has dropped in the index is something that should not be acceptable. There has to be improvement and not a failure. Can the Health Minister explain what went wrong and the areas where Goa has failed? Goa needs to know this, as health is an issue that has to be taken seriously.
