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Bridging the Gaps in Health Service Delivery for Truck Drivers of India Through Mobile Medical Units.
- Source :
-
Indian Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine . May-Aug2020, Vol. 24 Issue 2, p84-90. 7p. - Publication Year :
- 2020
-
Abstract
- Background: Truck drivers in India suffer from many lifestyle-related health problems. Providing primary health care services to truck drivers is essential to improve their overall health and well-being. This paper reports the findings of a community-based mobile medical unit program providing nonemergency and basic primary care services to truck drivers along the major highways of India. Piramal Swasthya Management and Research Institute launched this community-based mobile medical unit program, in partnership with Shriram Transport Finance Corporation Limited (STFCL). Materials and Methods: The paper describes the program model, its coverage, the sociodemographic profile, and common health morbidities of the truck drivers availing the program services. 2-year routine program data (April 2017 to March 2019) were accessed and analyzed. Results: A total of 1,167,210 number of unique truck drivers availed the program services during the reference period, of which 61,331 had complete data. The majority of truck drivers were male (99.1%) and just a few women (0.88%) and transgender (0.003%). The mean age was 45.5 years ± 10.91 and nearly half (49%) were in the productive age group (31-45 years). Noncommunicable and other chronic diseases (34.74%), musculoskeletal problems (24.17%), communicable diseases (14.52%), oral cavity-related problems (1.23%), and other minor ailments (17.77%) were the major consultation categories. Conclusion: Truck drivers in India have significant health morbidities. Providing primary health care services to truck drivers through mobile medical units is a step toward achieving universal health coverage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 09732284
- Volume :
- 24
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Indian Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 145389093
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.4103/ijoem.IJOEM_276_19