New Delhi, Dec 27 || Micro hospitals, which replace fragmented tertiary models with specialist-led coordinated care and reduced wait times, can play a crucial role in the country’s fight against the rising epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), said experts on Saturday.
NCDs, which include diabetes, hypertension, cancer, and obesity, affect over million in India and are behind 63 per cent of all deaths, as per the WHO data.
The rising burden of NCDs is also affecting the healthcare system.
Hospital bed density lags at just 0.55 per 1,000 population -- far below the WHO's 3 per 1,000 benchmarks -- leading to overcrowded facilities, long wait times, and variability in care quality.
“India has the doctors and the technology, but what we truly lack is continuous, coordinated care. And large tertiary hospitals are often designed for acute crises, not the long-term, community-centred management that NCDs require,” said Dr Jagdish Prasad, Former Director General Health Services (DGHS), while addressing the HEAL OneHealth Connect Series.