Impoverishing health expenditure
A World Health Organization and World Bank Group report shows that 6% of the population, across 37 countries, was tipped or pushed further into extreme poverty because they had to pay for health services out of their own pockets. When the study factored in a poverty measure of $2/day, 17% of people in these countries were impoverished, or further impoverished, by health expenses.
Read the full article here.
How palliative care helps families avoid financial catastrophe?
In the face of a life-threatening disease, what are you thinking of? The acute pain from the disease, the high costs of the treatment, the financial strain the treatment will cause to your family? A financial catastrophe can be avoided when one knows the realities of the situation. The huge debts which may have been incurred from the extensive treatments, will leave most families struggling financially. Instead of pursuing futile treatments, pain relief and symptom control are administered to let the patients feel better.
What is palliative care?
Palliative Care aims to improve the quality of life of a patient facing a life-threatening illness and his family. It is an approach of addressing the physical, emotional and spiritual needs and practical concerns of patients. Palliative care also emphasises on pain relief and symptom control, and through that, increases the quality of life for both the patients and care-givers.
“No one should die alone… each human should die with the sight of a loving face.” – Mother Teresa