Shobha Shukla
What can be a better explanation of what #PutPeopleFirst means than what was explained so candidly by Mahatma Gandhi. He had said: “I will give you a talisman. Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test- Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man [or woman or any gender] whom you may have seen, and ask yourself if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him [or her or them]. Will he [or she or they] gain anything by it? Will it restore him [or her or them] to a control over his [or her or their] own life and destiny? Then you will find your doubts melt away.”
Our health system seems to be following Gandhiji’s Talisman upside down. Instead of serving the most marginalised it is getting more geared to leave them behind. Our health system must meet the needs of the poorest of the poor and weakest of the weak. And the same quality of service which goes to this person should be a benchmark for everyone else.
Putting people first means thinking of solutions from the point of view of those most affected. People are not hard to reach. It is the healthcare services that are hard to reach and serve (most of) them with equity and human dignity.
Responses to HIV and TB, and for that matter any other health condition, must be built keeping the most vulnerable in mind. Quality health services should be made available to all, and the healthcare delivery systems should keep in mind people’s needs, their gender, age and socioeconomic status.
Here are some responses from people living with HIV, people who have survived TB, other community advocates, policymakers, programme implementers, clinicians, and the private sector to the question- “What does #PutPeopleFirst mean to you?”
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