Rural Health Inequities
- Health system density: India has about 37.6 health workers per 10,000 people, which is below the WHO recommended threshold of ~44.5 for essential services.
- In many states and districts, access to antenatal care, skilled birth attendance and postnatal care are far lower among rural, tribal and marginalized women.
- Social determinants such as poverty, caste, literacy, gender discrimination, distance from facility, transport, and delayed referral all contribute significantly to risk.
- Example: The “model” state of Kerala records an MMR of around 53 per 100,000 live births, showing what is possible when infrastructure, access and equality converge.