Analysis Of Health Care In Third World By Jeffrey Hays

Because of the United States immediate care and advanced medical treatments and technology, most expect to live past 60 and to be given care that could extend their life expectancy. However in parts of sub-saharan Africa, the lack of adequate health care and availability of resources changes certain beliefs relating to hospitals and different types of healing. In Jeffrey Hays article, “Health Care In the Developing World(Third World)”, he describes how the lack of resources, whether it be medicine or staff, drives fear into impoverished people about hospitals. While Americans consider a hospital as a place to find a cure to their illnesses, populations in Africa view facilities as a place of death. As stated previously, there is a scarcity

Because of poor ventilation, bacteria and viruses can be spread easily through the air. While the inadequacy of supplies is one problem, the training and shortage of staff play a huge role. Though there are volunteer physicians that travel to poverty-stricken nations to train a couple individuals, the government does not receive enough funding to train more people of basic care. Because of this absence of training, it can lead to further spread of death and disease. As a result of communities being deathly afraid of their country’s incompetent health system, they start to focus on alternative options. An individual’s poverty forces them to resort to buying false medication or folk medicine with traditional healers. Because many cannot afford medication, let alone hospital services, they are usually victims that are easily swayed to buy a “miracle pill” that could end all maladies. Folk medicine consists of traditional herbs that can heal primitive illnesses. If all other options are useless, there is also the culture of traditional healers. The aspect of voodoo and divinations still exist in certain parts of

However, through all these different types of alternatives, the majority of third world communities don’t expect to live long. In “World Health Report: Life Expectancy Falls in Poorest Countries”, Barry Mason explains the decreasing life expectancy and increasing child mortality rates. He gives the example that if a girl is born in Japan, she would receive whatever care she needs and would be surrounded by a sanitary environment with no lack of food, living to the age of 85. However, if she was born in Sierra Leone, she would be constantly exposed to different types of diseases and infections, have little to no immediate health care, high absence of nutrients, thus possibly living to the age of 36. In areas, such as Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe, the life expectancy for both males and females have decreased by 20 years. Though child mortality rates are lower, Africa’s rates are above the national average. With no dramatic change in mortality rates, health care system, and economic status, societies in impoverished countries will continue to see the hospital as a “last resort” option, and halt on attempts to improve health