Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 73
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 73
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 74
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 74
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Code Context
            if (Configure::read('debug')) {

                trigger_error($message, E_USER_WARNING);

            } else {
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		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;KK Shailaja, Kerala&#039;s Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)&#039;,
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		&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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	&#039;metaDesc&#039; =&gt; &#039;-The Hindu Business Line

Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. 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	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;KK Shailaja, Kerala&#039;s Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; null,
	&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&#039;,
	&#039;credit_writer&#039; =&gt; &#039;The Hindu Business Line, 29 April, 2021, https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&#039;,
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$metaKeywords = &#039;Health Infrastructure,Access to Healthcare,Cuba,Kerala,Human Development,Public Health,Public Spending on Health,Lifestyle diseases,Local self-governments,Immunisation,National Quality Assurance Standards,Oxygen plant&#039;
$metaDesc = &#039;-The Hindu Business Line

Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot; title=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&#039;
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Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks..."/>
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                <strong>KK Shailaja, Kerala's Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)</strong></h1>
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                <p style="text-align:justify">-The Hindu Business Line</p><p style="text-align:justify">Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What would be your suggestion?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.</p><p style="text-align:justify">The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the ideal international models in this context?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.</p><p style="text-align:justify">I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece" title="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece">click here</a> to read more.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Hindu</strong></p>               </font>
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		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;KK Shailaja, Kerala&#039;s Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)&#039;,
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		&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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	&#039;metaDesc&#039; =&gt; &#039;-The Hindu Business Line

Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. 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	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;KK Shailaja, Kerala&#039;s Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; null,
	&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&#039;,
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Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...&#039;
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Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks..."/>
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                <strong>KK Shailaja, Kerala's Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)</strong></h1>
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                <p style="text-align:justify">-The Hindu Business Line</p><p style="text-align:justify">Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What would be your suggestion?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.</p><p style="text-align:justify">The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the ideal international models in this context?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.</p><p style="text-align:justify">I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece" title="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece">click here</a> to read more.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Hindu</strong></p>               </font>
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&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. 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	&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
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Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;-The Hindu Business Line&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Kerala&amp;rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&amp;rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&amp;rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&amp;rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What would be your suggestion?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What are the ideal international models in this context?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&amp;rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;em&gt;* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&amp;rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&amp;rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&amp;rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;Please &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot; title=&quot;https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece&quot;&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; to read more.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align:justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: The Hindu&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&#039;
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Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks..."/>
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                <strong>KK Shailaja, Kerala's Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)</strong></h1>
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                <p style="text-align:justify">-The Hindu Business Line</p><p style="text-align:justify">Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What would be your suggestion?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.</p><p style="text-align:justify">The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the ideal international models in this context?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.</p><p style="text-align:justify">I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece" title="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece">click here</a> to read more.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Hindu</strong></p>               </font>
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		'title' => 'KK Shailaja, Kerala's Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)',
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		'description' => '<p style="text-align:justify">-The Hindu Business Line</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What would be your suggestion?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the ideal international models in this context?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece">click here</a> to read more.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Hindu</strong></p>
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	'metaTitle' => 'Interviews | KK Shailaja, Kerala's Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)',
	'metaKeywords' => 'Health Infrastructure,Access to Healthcare,Cuba,Kerala,Human Development,Public Health,Public Spending on Health,Lifestyle diseases,Local self-governments,Immunisation,National Quality Assurance Standards,Oxygen plant',
	'metaDesc' => '-The Hindu Business Line

Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...',
	'disp' => '<p style="text-align:justify">-The Hindu Business Line</p><p style="text-align:justify">Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What would be your suggestion?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.</p><p style="text-align:justify">The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the ideal international models in this context?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.</p><p style="text-align:justify">I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece" title="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece">click here</a> to read more.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Hindu</strong></p>',
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	'id' => (int) 59235,
	'title' => 'KK Shailaja, Kerala's Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)',
	'subheading' => null,
	'description' => '<p style="text-align:justify">-The Hindu Business Line</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts:</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What would be your suggestion?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the ideal international models in this context?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What distinguishes Kerala from other States?</em></p>

<p style="text-align:justify">When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn&rsquo;t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre&rsquo;s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify">Please <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/if-we-were-in-power-at-the-centre-we-would-nationalise-the-health-system-kk-shailaja-health-minister-kerala/article34439758.ece">click here</a> to read more.</p>

<p style="text-align:justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: The Hindu</strong></p>
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Kerala&rsquo;s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala&rsquo;s fight against the pandemic is the State&rsquo;s Health Minister and CPI(M)&rsquo;s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks...'
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We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What would be your suggestion?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment.</p><p style="text-align:justify">The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people.</p><p style="text-align:justify"><em>* What are the ideal international models in this context?</em></p><p style="text-align:justify">The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba&rsquo;s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. 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A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too.</p><p style="text-align:justify">Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State&rsquo;s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. 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KK Shailaja, Kerala's Health Minister, interviewed by AM Jigeesh (The Hindu Business Line)

-The Hindu Business Line Kerala’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the subject of international conversation about public health systems. Piloting Kerala’s fight against the pandemic is the State’s Health Minister and CPI(M)’s Central Committee member KK Shailaja who speaks exclusively to BusinessLine about the criticality of publicly-run healthcare and how the need of the hour is to nationalise the system. Excerpts: * What are the lessons to be learnt from the present crisis? I think there are two major lessons from this pandemic. One, that the country needs proper planning and decentralised implementation mechanisms to improve our health system. And two, there can be no delay in enhancing public investment in healthcare. We spend just one per cent of our GDP on the health sector, it should be increased to at least ten per cent. Countries like Cuba invest much more in healthcare. * What would be your suggestion? I am a Leftist. I have no say over the health policy of this country at present. But had the Left been in power at the Centre now, we would have nationalised healthcare and education. The Government should have control over healthcare so that everyone -- poor or rich -- gets equitable treatment. The ideology of the present Government at the Centre is capitalist. But functioning even within the capitalist policy, they should try to improve the public healthcare system. They should also try to regulate the private healthcare providers so that they do not exploit the poor and vulnerable people. * What are the ideal international models in this context? The Scandinavian countries, even though I have never been there, provide the best healthcare in the world. But I visited the UK once to see their NHS and GP Surgery. Their primary sector and Cuba’s family doctors system have influenced me when we started the Family Health Centres here in Kerala. Healthcare should be universal, with some regulations at the tertiary healthcare facilities. There should be more investment in health at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. There should be decentralised planning with regulations. Cuba has achieved a lot because of their centralised planning and decentralised implementation. Their system of healthcare is people-centric and patient-centric. Their egalitarian concept and decentralisation can be emulated here. * What distinguishes Kerala from other States? When we came to power in 2016, we found that the Primary Health Centres were working only till afternoon. They didn’t have lab facilities. So, people had to go to the cities and tertiary healthcare centres even for a common cold. I wanted to focus on prevention. Lifestyle diseases are very high in Kerala. People need individual care at primary health centres. We even changed the aesthetic appeal of our PHCs with good buildings, toilets, labs and out-patient rooms. Immunisation rooms were made child-friendly.Local self-governments and KIIFB played an important role in this. We trained Panchayat presidents and medical officers on building this infrastructure. They helped us a lot in this work within the limited availability of the Centre’s plan fund. A lot of people contributed financially too to build this infrastructure. Out of the 946 PHCs, 617 have new buildings now. It is a public movement. More than 100 of these PHCs have received National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) certification. We have improved our secondary level hospitals at the Taluk level. Some hospitals have more facilities than a corporate hospital. Tertiary healthcare too got improved. The medical colleges were modernised. New medical colleges started. Most modern equipment is available in these hospitals now. We also promote research in medicine too. Till 2016, 37 per cent people were depending on Government hospitals. Now more than 50 per cent of the State’s population opt for Government hospitals without any hesitation. This systemic change helped us in fighting the pandemic. Our policy is that healthcare should be accessible, affordable and friendly. Please click here to read more. Image Courtesy: The Hindu