Quality healthcare is the right of every individual: M. Venkaiah Naidu

New Delhi, 4 March (HS): The Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday today expressed his concern over the urban-rural gap in health infrastructure and called upon the private sector to join hands with the government to bring the latest healthcare diagnostic and treatment facilities to the rural areas at an affordable cost.

Venkaiah Naidu said, “There is an urgent need to bridge this divide so that people in rural areas also get access to modern and state-of-the-art healthcare in their own villages.” Stressing the importance of providing quality healthcare to every individual, the Vice President said, “No one in our villages should suffer because of lack of medical facilities.”

Speaking at the inauguration of Amara Multispecialty Hospital in Tirupati, the Vice President also appealed to all eligible citizens to get vaccinated. He said, “I would like to utilize this opportunity to renew my appeal to all eligible citizens to get vaccinated and join the fight against COVID-19”

Complementing the government for allocating a sum of Rs. 2,23,846 crores to health in the recent budget, he said, “I am certain that this move will give a powerful boost to creating healthcare infrastructure in our country and most importantly, cut the out-of-pocket expenditure on health.”

Naidu also called for spreading awareness on health schemes like Ayushman Bharat so that the underprivileged could take advantage of it.

Praising the Prime Minister and Chief Ministers for their leadership and in the fight against coronavirus, Naidu said that they worked together as a united ‘Team India’ in this hour of crisis. He, however, said that special appreciation should go to doctors and medical staff for their relentless efforts to contain the pandemic. The Vice President said, “The nation will always remain grateful to our medical fraternity, including doctors, para-medical staff, health, sanitary and ASHA workers for their selfless service and sacrifices during one of the most challenging periods of our time.” He also acknowledged the gallant work done by the police personnel during the pandemic and appreciated media persons for working on the frontline to keep the public informed and educated about Coronavirus.

Citing India’s incessant efforts of sharing resources with the rest of the world, the Vice President said, “We lived up to our age-old philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam by supplying medicines and medical equipment to over 150 countries in the world. Since the rollout of the “Made in India” COVID vaccines in January this year, India has supplied vaccines to several countries.” He said that India’s reputation of being a “pharmacy to the world” shines even more brightly today.

Noting the toll hospital visits take on patients and their family members, the Vice President, appealed to the healthcare providers to explore ways to improve patient experience and reduce patient suffering. Calling for bringing a human touch to medical profession, he said that the doctors should not just rely upon the medical tests but also spend time with and talk to the patients. The Vice President also urged the doctors, actors and media persons to educate the public about the preventive steps and safeguard from Covid-19. He termed the politics, medical profession and education as means of public service.

Expressing his concern over the rise in Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), the Vice President called upon everyone to adopt a healthy lifestyle by taking up regular physical exercise, consuming nutritious and balanced diet, practicing yoga and meditation to keep NCDs at bay.
Complimenting Dr Prasad Gourineni and Dr Ramadevi Gourineni for setting up Amara Hospital, he expressed the hope that it would provide world-class healthcare to the public at an affordable cost.

The Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, K Narayana Swamy, Founder of Amara Raja Group of Companies, Galla Ramchandra Naidu, Former Minister, Galla Aruna Kumari, Lok Sabha MP from Guntur, Jayadev Galla, Chairman Amara Hospital, Dr Prasad Gaurineni, Managing Director Amara Hospital, Ramadevi Gaurineni and other staff members of Amara Hospital were present on the occasion.