Republic of the Philippines

Visayas State University

Social Science Unit
Tacloban City

MODULE
IN
TRENDS AND ISSUES IN
THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Submitted by
Jayson C. Dapiton
Jhoefiel T. Parantar
Flordelyn M. Tinaja
Diane Delantar
Kristelmie Mendoza
BSED 3

Submitted to
Kriezlynn Kiel Mardo
Instructor
Topic: Health in the third world city
I. Learning Outcomes
At the end of the discussion, the students will be able to:
A. Able to analyze the gaps in healthcare availability in a third world city.
B. Identify solutions to improve health in a third world city.

II. Pre-Activity (Pre- Test)

III. Formal Discussion

Third World Countries (developing or least developed countries): a large group of
countries in Asia, African and Latin America which have lower incomes than first world
countries. Third world countries are known as middle income countries.
Health in the Third world city
 Health care provision is poor
Low- and middle-income cities tend to have less health staff relative to their
population than high income cities and countries.
 High population growth
Third world cities have had relatively high rates of population growth compared to
first world countries. This has two problems: They need to invest large amounts
in both physical and human capitals in order to create the goods and services
and jobs need for their growing populations. It means they have to forgo some
consumption and invest more but it is not possible as high population means
more consumption. High population growth brings high dependency ratios.
Health and mortality in Third World city on average enjoy poorer health and are
likely to die young.
 Poor nutrition for individual
Poor nutrition is a major contributor to ill health and high mortality rates. Poor
nutrition also affects both the physical and mental development of individuals. Access to
clean water is vital for health. Also, clean environment is vital for health. Large number
of people die from water-borne diseases and diseases carried by animals such as
malaria.
Why do gaps in healthcare availability in Third World Cities exist?

Three deficiencies that factor into diminished access to healthcare in developing nations
are:

1. lack of resources
2. lack of medical practitioners
3. lack of knowledge

A lack of resources can make it difficult for people in developing nations to access
healthcare. Resources can range from money to tools to infrastructure. Even the most
knowledgeable, available healthcare providers are limited without the proper equipment
and medications and a clean shelter in which to work.

The countries with a serious lack of doctors are some of the world’s poorest
countries. These countries are burdened by several epidemics such as HIV/AIDS. Many
of them suffer from corruption in the government, civil strife and natural disasters such
as famine and drought. Financial resources are unevenly distributed, as the results of
economic development are not properly managed. Often, allocating financial support for
a good healthcare system and providing the human resources to run it are forgotten.

People who want to obtain medical education cannot do so because they do not have
money. Without money means that those who intend to become medical professionals
are unable to realize their dream because they cannot access the required training. In
some cases, those who are able to train succumb to the lure of a better life in developed
countries, financially and career-wise. Many of the doctors who trained in Africa are now
working in different countries.

When medical practitioners in developing nations are well educated and effective in
their field, they often migrate to wealthier countries where the wages and working
environment are better. This phenomenon is sometimes called “brain drain.” According
to a 2004 bulletin of the World Health Organization, nursing vacancies in Canada, the
United States and the United Kingdom led to a considerable increase in the number of
nurses leaving the Philippines and some African countries.

(Developed countries such as the United States and Japan require the services of
foreign healthcare providers to meet the needs of their population. So, you can imagine
how scarce healthcare providers are in developing countries. Aside from their dire need
for doctors and other healthcare providers, access to proper healthcare is almost non-
existent.

Countries that can afford to pay for the services of foreign healthcare providers
contribute to the brain drain in other countries. Since they can provide better salaries,
accommodation and resources, foreign-trained doctors and nurses opt to work or
migrate to other countries rather than serve their fellow citizens. Many of these foreign-
trained healthcare providers come from developing countries that have healthcare
worker crises. Many foreign doctors in the United States come from Pakistan, India and
Ethiopia. Some of these countries may only have one doctor for every 1,000 residents.

The U.S. certification exams pass only the brightest and best professionals from foreign
countries, meaning these doctors and nurses are in the top ranks in their counties as
well. The lure of a better life for themselves and their families make them decide not use
their talents to improve the healthcare services in their home countries and instead work
in a foreign land to help patients who can afford to pay.)

In many developing nations, a lack of knowledge contributes to the healthcare

shortage. In such cases, members of the community do not have the education to stop
preventable diseases, and medical practitioners do not have the knowledge to treat
diseases after people become ill. Studies have shown that in Papa New Guinea and
Pakistan, less than half of health workers were able to correctly diagnose and treat
malaria and viral diarrhea, respectively, according to a 2006 textbook.

Results of lack of access to proper healthcare, it’s inevitable that more negative things
can occur when people are unable to access a physician. The inability to have whatever
is ailing them diagnosed immediately is one of the issues faced by the countries with a
limited number of doctors. Some people resort to alternative cures or reliefs. Another
fact is that they would rather use alternative forms to cure their illness because they do
not have money for hospital stays or purchase the medicines they would be required to
take.

For many of these countries, almost everything has to be paid by the patient. Often,
patients only get poultices, bandages and compresses. They are not able to seek
medical treatment even for simple illnesses that are easy to cure, but can pester when
left untreated. Some patients suffer complications because they did not receive medical
help on time. The complications can lead to social isolation for the rest of their lives.

The scarcity of specialized doctors paves the way for some doctors to perform medical
procedures they are not qualified to do, which can result in death or permanent injuries.)

What countries lack healthcare the most?

Below is the list of countries with the fewest doctors, according to World Atlas. The list
ranks the countries chronologically, with the number of doctors per million inhabitants.
Included are the latest available population figures for 2019, from the World Population
Review (M = million).

1. Liberia – (Monrovia) 14 (4.9M)

2. Malawi – (Lilongwe) 19 (19.7M)
3. Niger – (Niamey) 19 (23.1M)
4. Ethiopia – (Adis Abeba) 22 (110.1M)
 5. Sierra Leone – (Freetown) 22 (7.8M)
6. Tanzania – (Dodoma) 30 (60.9M)
7. Somalia – (Mogadishu) 35 (15.6M)
8. Chad – (Ndjamena) 37 (15.8M)
9. The Gambia – (Banjul) 38 (2.2M)
10. Mozambique – (Maputo) 40 (31.4M)
11. Guinea-Bissau – (Bissau) 45 (1.9M)
12. Burkina Faso – (Ouagadougou) 47 (20.3M)
13. Central African Republic – (Bangui) 50 (4.8M)
14. Togo – (Lomè) 53 (8.1M)
15. Rwanda – (Kigale) 56 (12.7M)
16. Papua New Guinea – (Port Moresby) 58 (8.5M)
17. Benin – (Porto Novo) 59 (11.8M)
18. Senegal – (Dakar) 59 (16.7M)
19. Timor-Leste – (Dili) 73 (1.3M)
20. Cameroon – (Jaunde) 80 (25.3M)
21. Mali – (Bamako) 83 (19.6M)
22. Zimbabwe – (Harare) 83 (17.2M)
23. Congo Republic – (Kinshasa) 95 (5.5M)
24. Ghana – (Accra) (96 (30.1M)
25. Guinea – 100 (13.4M)

HOW TO IMPROVE HEALTH IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES?

3 Ways to Improve Health in Developing Countries
1. Investing in Education: One of the most important ways to improve health in
developing countries is by educating citizens. Educating people enables them to
obtain safer jobs, increased health literacy, take preventive healthcare measures,
avoid riskier health behaviors and demand better-quality health services. This is
especially true for women living in developing countries, from girls entering
puberty to pregnant mothers. Most deaths that occur in developing countries are
neonatal, or during the first five years of life. By “providing formal or vocational
education, adequate family planning, and antenatal services can break the cycle
of poverty and empower women”, this type of education would begin providing
soon-to-be mothers with the necessary knowledge to keep her family, future
children, and self both safer and healthier.
2. Increasing Health Benefits for the Poor: Poorer countries receive much lower
health benefits than richer countries. In developing areas, the poor are subjected
to higher risk of contracting diseases and lower access to quality healthcare. This
is solely due to the cost of medicine, treatments and vaccinations. Through the
creation of targeted systems that strategies identify who is poor and eligible for
lower-cost health care. Another attribute of this system is directing programs
directly towards lesser developed areas. This targeting system has the potential
 to “eliminate poverty at less than 10 percent the cost of development programs
that do not discriminate between poor and rich”. These systems are done on
different levels: most specifically they target individually poor, geographically
poor, what diseases need to be prioritized, and the age of those that need health
care the most.
3. Promoting Primary and Essential Healthcare: A way to improve health in
developing countries involves governments providing cost-effective health
packages for everyone. An example of this would be Ethiopia and Malawi, where
governments have focused on achieving universal vaccine coverage, developing
cleaner water supplies and creating better sanitation practices. On a broader
scale, as part of the Sustainable Development Goals, the U.N. has agreed to
pursue universal healthcare by 2030. The initiative to create universal healthcare
includes “access to quality essential healthcare services and access to safe,
effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all”. By
making availability universal, resources can be directed towards primary-level
facilities of care that strengthen the overall treatments that people will be
receiving.

IV.