In a landmark achievement of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government of India, the country has a notable landmark- 1,50,000 Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWCs) have been operationalised before 31st December, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) said on Friday. With this, the country has achieved the goal of establishing 1.5 lakh AB-HWCs by 31st December 2022, which was set in 2018.
According to the website of AB-HWC, India has now 153,530 functional Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness in the country.
A statement issued by the ministry said that fulfilling the principles of “Antyodaya”- leaving no one behind, 150,000 Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWCs) are transforming the delivery of comprehensive primary health care services which are universally free and cater to all age groups from birth to death, through a continuum of care approach.
Ensuring the reach of healthcare services to the innermost regions of the nation through various initiatives, AB-HWCs have surpassed 8.5 teleconsultations via e-Sanjeevni, where nearly 4 lakh teleconsultations take place on a daily basis, the statement further said. The ministry added that more than 86.90 crore beneficiaries have been cumulatively screened for non-communicable diseases, including 29.95 Crore for Hypertension, 25.56 Crore for Diabetes, 17.44 Crore for Oral cancer, 8.27 Crore for Breast Cancer and 5.66 Crore for Cervical Cancer.
In light of expansion of AB-HWCs, the number of essential medicines has increased to 172 at Primary Health Centres – Health Wellness Centres (PHC-HWC) and 105 at Sub Health Centres – Health Wellness Centres (SHC-HWC). Moreover, essential diagnostics have also expanded to 63 at PHC-HWC and 14 at SHC-HWC. AB-HWCs also encompass wellness sessions on Yoga, Zumba, cyclathons, walkathons, and provide guidelines on diet, physical activity, positive parenting, tobacco, alcohol cessation among other aspects to imbibe a mindset for community well-being, according to the health ministry.
More than 1.60 crore wellness sessions have been conducted at these centres, the statement added. AB-HWCs have also operationalized 2-3 centres in the urban sphere under the umbrella of Urban Primary Health Centre-Health and Wellness Centre (UPHC-HWC), strengthening outpatient care, and covering a population of 15,000 to 20,000.
PM Narendra Modi applauded the efforts of the nation in accomplishing this feat before the set deadline, and said that these centres will serve to provide citizens all across the nation to easily access and avail primary healthcare facilities.
1,50,000 हेल्थ एंड वेलनेस सेंटर!
— Dr Mansukh Mandaviya (@mansukhmandviya) December 29, 2022
PM @NarendraModi जी ने दिसम्बर 2022 तक, देश में डेढ़ लाख AB-HWCs शुरू करने का लक्ष्य रखा था। मुझे बताते हुए खुशी है की आज हमने यह लक्ष्य प्राप्त कर लिया है।
ये केंद्र निश्चित ही नागरिकों की प्राथमिक स्वास्थ्य सुविधा को मजबूत करेंगे। pic.twitter.com/Nl6CUy8DDr
Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya congratulated the nation on this achievement and expressed his joy stating that India had successfully achieved the goal of setting 1.5 lakh AB-HWCs by 31 December 2022. He informed that PM Modi had set this deadline in 2018 with the goal of ensuring good health facility for the person standing last in the queue.
Ayushman Bharat (AB) is an attempt to move from a selective approach to health care to deliver a comprehensive range of services spanning preventive, promotive, curative, rehabilitative and palliative care. It has two components which are complementary to each other.
The first component of the initiative is the Health & Wellness Centres (HWCs), which have been created to deliver Comprehensive Primary Health Care, that is universal and free to users, with a focus on wellness and the delivery of an expanded range of services closer to the community. The second component is the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) which provides health insurance cover of Rs. 5 lakhs per year to over 10 crore poor and vulnerable families for seeking secondary and tertiary care.
HWCs are envisaged to deliver expanded range services that go beyond Maternal and child health care services to include care for non-communicable diseases, palliative and rehabilitative care, Oral, Eye and ENT care, mental health and first level care for emergencies and trauma , including free essential drugs and diagnostic services.
