Healthcare focuses on cure not prevention

The National National

THE focus of government, health workers and people has been on curative healthcare with less attention given to preventative health, an official says.
Bulk of the funding was consumed by the curative arm of the healthcare which failed to recognise and empower people to be better, wealthy and wise at first contact, said PNG Christian Health Service chief executive Ulch Tapia.
“We wait for people to fall sick and come to the hospital,” Tapia told health managers of the agencies of CHS that gathered for the 49th national annual conference.
Tapia said the trend seemed to be maintained that people referred to their performance as sluggish.
He said: “We know it all, you do what we tell you to do and you will be fine” mentality of the health workers was why the sick walked out of health facilities.
“We allow people to leave their homes to seek healthcare services because we think it is their responsibility to get themselves treated,” Tapia said.
“We never grow tired of seeing the sick forming long lines to be treated.”
Tapia urged health workers to change their mindsets from curative to and health promotion and prevention of diseases.
He also called on the Government during this time of planning for the national health plan 2021-2030 to make a lot of investment in sustainable empowerment in developing each community.
“The mindset of health workers and people must shift from curative to preventative in order to achieve the national government’s Vision 2050 statement of ‘better, healthy, wealthy, and wise PNG’.”
Tapia said when resources and efforts were concentrated on that:

  • The health indicators will improve sharply;
  • urban migration will decline;
  • decline in social issues; and,
  • Health facilities shift to provide specialised care;

The theme of the CHS conference which started yesterday and will end on Thursday was ‘improved support for effective health service delivery for the rural majority to achieve better results in key programmes’.