Accessibility to Health Care

Accessibility plays a very major role in seeking the health care. All the families interviewed mentioned that they prefer to visit the Bengalis doctors. The health camps and MCD dispensary are not reliable. Importantly, a health camp is not organized on a regular basis. The first and foremost reason given by the residents is that all the local private practioners are easily accessible and secondly sometimes they also check them free of cost when they don’t have the money. A woman recalled her time in Pushta and shared:In Pushta everybody was employed. And we had enough savings also. And there was no problem with regard to hunger and food crisis. And whenever we get ill then we go to Kasturba Gandhi That hospital was near from our place and there was no problem like transport. But after coming here we have lost everything. We have become unemployed. The nearest government hospital is the Balmiki hospital and it takes 10 rupees for one side to visit the hospital. What will the poor do? And why we should spend 20 rupees for commuting, if we have Bangalis doctors here. (Ruksana 53 years)

It is clear from the above narration that Proximity plays an important role in seeking the health care. Bawana is flooded with local practioners, so whenever the residents fall ill, they first approach the local practioner because they are available to them for 24 h. And if the case is serious they would be referred to Balmiki hospital. Secondly it saves money and time in travelling to other places.