Primary Health Care: Historical Perspectives, Multidisciplinary Teams, And Critical Analysis

Principles and goals of Primary Health Care

Describe about the Primary health care?

Primary health care is providing care via the practical, social and scientifically methods and technology. It is examined by the people  and the family living in a community. The role is in the area of health, lifestyle and the atmosphere.  Hospitals and the primary health centers are the systems in which primary health care is provided. Primary health care is a relation between the mutual sharing, the equalities and the social justice for all (Marcos, Cueto, 2004). The focus of PHC is on the assets of the individuals; the community and the opportunities that are meant for change; maximizing the community’s involvement and the usage of health technologies that are affordable, acceptable, accessible and appropriate. (McMurray, 2010).. In this report the sociological analysis template is used by me to analyze the primary health care in Australia and other parts of the world. According to me the sociological analysis can explained by explaining the four basic factors historical, cultural, structural and cultural.

PHC that is followed up in Australia and any where else in the whole world include eight components. They are described as the following:

• Education to identify, prevent and control the health challenges occurring. I strongly agree to this point as it is the first step in everything.
• Supply of proper food, safe water and the sanitation hygiene to be maintained in order to have a good health and proper nutrition.
• Child and mother care which include family planning also.
• Immunizing against the prevalent disease.
• Control and the prevention methodologies for the endemic disease.
• Treatment for common diseases
• Health promotion of the mental, emotional and the spiritual health
• Provision of needful medications

The principals and goals of the primary health care are:

• Providing equity in all the health care service: It states that the health care services would be provided to all the individuals equally who live in the community without any discrimination between the caste, gender, class and age. It is also mentioned that the children of the different classes should use up the health service equally. In Australia the health care system is equal for all and many health care are strict about this.
• Initializing the idea of introducing multi sectors: It says that the health care system may be improved if the other sectors of agriculture, education, public sectors and the industrial sector are included. Like we can see educating the children studying in school is taking the preventive measures in advance (Bodenheimer, 2012). In Australia the various multi sectors are included to improve PHC like the medical industries development to reduce the cost of the medicines.
• Developing a workforce to carry out the health care services: It says that the general practitioners, doctors, nurse and the health care staff to be present in all the localities. The Australian government is taking daily measures to improve this.

Input from technology: It says the techniques and the technological equipment used in the service of health should be affordable, accessible and feasible so as to be used by all the people living in the community.

According to me the historical perspective of PHC should be the core basic thing that is to be undertaken to improve the health care system and to safeguard the common people’s health. I would say in Australia it was seen that the PHC planning strategies are such that the gains are seen even when the economic and political conditions are prevailing (Zuaer et al,2014). As the PHC was the main origination of the Alma-Ata conference the goals made were significant but it received criticisms from several ends therefore the PHC approach and planning strategies were made so as to kill out the disparities relating to local health problems. I see that the main goal that is followed from centuries for PHC is providing equity in health care system.

The Australian government is focusing on the establishment of multi sectors so as to provide health are to all and to expand the health care system. I searched up for so many aspects in Australia, the major thing that I noticed was the multisector establishment and many planned approaches were followed afterwards. The approaches which helps to give idea about sociological analysis are described below:

Selective primary health care:. It is a strategy focusing on the control of disease in the developing countries. The Australian government has made the PHC as selective PHC. There in Australia, it follows an economical and more feasible approach by targeting a specific area of health and for it choosing the most cost and effective treatment (Chilkadikaou, 2013). The example of selective PHC that followed in Australia and other parts of the world  is “GOBI”. The GOBi was the main structural factor that was established.

GOBI FFF focuses upon the issues of health in the population which is developing and are based on the mortality rates of the young ones and new born (Starfield, 2012). The paln of the health care department is to select the diseases which require the immediate action and then finding out the intervention method. While analyzing it socially I found that the major measures which Australians took were on assessing the growth of the new born, oral rehydration therapy introduction, reducing the problem of breast feeding, creating family planning methods, educating the girls and providing the sufficient nutrient like iron and folic acid to the pregnant woman. All these factors are the cultural factors that were the socialized by common man and by media also.

Historical perspectives of Primary Health Care

Population aging and the role of primary health care.: According to the stats the older people number would double by 2025. So PHC has planned some approaches to protect the people aged above 60. I see this aspect as the cultural factor in the history of sociology and as a means of developing the country sociologically and culturally(Annelles, 2010). The approaches that are followed are well planned as it is the old age people who are more risk of getting disease like diabetes, arthritis etc. Thus planning the promotion of health care, preventing the diseases and carrying out the disease eradication methods would surely prove effective.

 The sociology analysis is for the people so I feel that the people of the community should participate in every way to improve their social life, their health and other’s health too. The participation of the community in the health care system offers a greater way of development by solving the problems, awaking them about their health’s and well being (Gazmararian JA, et al, 2010). It make sure that the requirements, the needs and the difficulties of all the people of any class should be addressed. It also says that the methods and the strategy followed must be acceptable feasibility should be high and could be sustained by every one. The basic meaning of community participation is the involvement of all the individuals in a community to improve ones health and others health to by following some methods like:

• Adoption of a healthy behaviour in order to prevent and treat disorders.
• Participating in the disease prevention methods and plan.
• Contributing to the planning, designing, implementing and monitoring of health programmers’;

So, in Australia it is the sole responsibility of government at all the levels, non governmental organizations, health care planners and agencies at the international level to help communities to organize and be involved for their health care and development.

 I think that to assess the value of something is to compare it to a set criteria. The methods of observation and measurements to be used. I believe evaluation is an essential step to provide quality health care. The things that are to be focused in the primary health care are the system, the health care programs and the services undertaken to improve the health. I say the quality check tells us to further improve and keep an eye on the performance of the health care staff by checking out the care provided against explicit criteria. According to me the Australian government Primary Health Care should be assessed up by following the standards of evaluation. These are first is of utility which means providing information to the one who requires it, second is feasibility which means the information should be real, diplomat and in a prudent way. Third is propriety which says the information provided must be legal, equal and ethical. Fourth is accuracy that is checking the worth of information provided. Evaluation in Primary Health Care setting is administrating the workers, staff, the setting and the individuals who are undertaking the services. The steps followed to assess the primary health care programs include the following: Formative that is checking the structure of services. I believe that in Australia the delivery and the structure of programs that are developed like the multi sectorial programs gives proper facilities for all the people from the old age to pregnant ladies and providing nourishment to the young ones. Second is Summative or impact that is influence and the effect on the health of the people. I after viewing up all the programs it can be seen most of the programs were completed on time and aimed to reach the objective, but some still are lagging behind the objectives and their end dates. So, as per me the Australian government should take more measures to spread the program to each and every people especially the ones who are illiterate, the Aboriginal and Islander people. I critically analyze the situation of Australia by saying that the PHC has not fully reached to all the people, the major sufferers are the Aboriginal population of Australia.

Conclusion

Summing up, I can say that the primary health care system is the one which can save population from health crisis in present and future also. The government  and non governmental plans, methods and strategies applied  are taken up seriously and effectively than the risk of health among all the age groups form infants to the old ones can be easily eradicated.

 followed appropriately than the risk of health crisis among the infants, adults and the older ones can easily be diminished. Thus all the individuals should take up the measures seriously and carry it out in a set prescribed way.                                            

References

.Annells, M (2010). Where does primary health care fit in primary health care? Contemporary Nurse, 26 (1): 15-26

Australian Nursing Federation (2010). Nursing roles in primary health care: fact sheet no 5. Melbourne: ANF.

Australian Practice Nurses Association (2011). About practice nursing. Available at: https://www.apna.asn.au/displaycommon.cfm?an=2, sited 19 March 2011.

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2008. Australia’s Health 2008, Cat. no. AUS 99, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Canberra.

Bodenheimer T, Wagner E & Grumbach K, 2012. Improving Primary Care of Patients with Chronic Illness, Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 288, no. 14, pp. 1775-79.

Chalkidou K, Tunis S, Lopert R, Rochaix L, Sawicki PT, Nasser M et al, 2013. Comparative effectiveness research and evidence-based health policy: experience from four countries, The Milbank Quarterly, vol. 87, no. 2, available from: https://www.milbank.org/quarterly/8702feat.html

Gazmararian JA, et al.: The Development of a Health Literacy Assessment Tool for Health Plans. Journal of HealthCommunication: International Perspectives 2010, 15(1 suppl. 2):93-101. 

McMurray, A (2010). Leadership in primary health care: an international perspective. Contemporary Nurse, 26 (1): 30-36.

MEASURE Evaluation/USAID/WHO, 2012, Profiles of Health Facility Assessment Methods: Report of the International Health Facility Assessment Network (IHFAN), Chapel Hill, NC: MEASURE Evaluation. https://www.cpc.unc.edu/measure/publications/tr-06-36

Starfield B, 2012. Toward international primary care reform, Canadian Medical Association Journal, vol. 180, no. 11, available from: https://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/180/11/1091

The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System, 2009. The path to a high performance U.S. Health System: A 2020 Vision and the Policies to Pave the Way, The Commonwealth Fund, vol. 105, available from: https://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/media/Files/Publications/Fund%20Report/2009/Feb/The%20Path%20to%20a%20High%20Performance%20US%20Health%20System/1237_Commission_path_high_perform_US_hlt_sys_WEB_rev_03052009.pdf (accessed April 2009).

WHO (2006). Engaging for health: eleventh general programme of work 2006-2015. A global health agenda: executive summary. Geneva: WHO.

Zwar N, Harris M, Griffiths R, Roland M, Dennis S, Powell Davies G, et al, 2014. A systematic Review of Chronic Disease Management, Research Centre for Primary Health Care and Equity, School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW, available at: https://www.anu.edu.au/aphcri/Domain/ ChronicDiseaseMgmt/Approved_25_Zwar.pd