Cambodia's Main Challenges in Improving Health among the Poor

The royal Cambodian government (RCG) has achieved remarkable progress in recent years in reducing the poverty rate by more than half. However, the majority of those escaping from poverty only did so marginally and remain largely near-poor and still highly vulnerable to the slightest of shocks. One of the most critical factors in enabling the poor to escape from poverty, and not only remain non-poor but go on to prosper, lies in ensuring higher levels of health welfare in these households. This is especially important in rural areas, where most of Cambodia s poor reside and where health indicators show a stark divergence with those for urban areas. If poverty is to continue to decline apace, and the gap between rich and poor is to continue to narrow, then the RCG will need to ensure that poor and near-poor people s health care is greatly improved such that they can make the most of the new opportunities in education and employment that are now becoming available. With significant improvements in some health indicators over the past decade, the major challenges in health care going forward are now becoming clearer. These include: making a breakthrough in tackling high levels of child mortality and child malnutrition; addressing equity more effectively in health service provision and health spending, through pro-poor targeted programs and improvements in the coverage and rates of use of health equity funds (HEF); and the improved monitoring of unregulated private providers of medication used by the majority of the poor. In addition, another crucial step forward will be providing adequate financing and ensuring the implementation of Cambodia s first national social protection strategy (NSPS).

Bibliographic Details

Main Author:	World Bank Group
Language:	English en_US
Published:	Washington, DC 2014-11
Subjects:	AGED, ANEMIA, ANTENATAL CARE, BIRTH ATTENDANTS, BREAST, BREASTFEEDING, BURDEN OF DISEASE, CANCER, CHILD CARE, CHILD DEATHS, CHILD GROWTH, CHILD MALNUTRITION, CHILD MORTALITY, CHILD NUTRITION, CHILDBEARING, CHRONIC DISEASES, CLINICS, COMMUNICABLE DISEASES, CONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFERS, COUNSELING, DEATHS, DEBT, DEFECATION, DELIVERY CARE, DIABETES, DIARRHEA, DIET, DISEASE BURDEN, DOCTORS, DRINKING WATER, EPIDEMIC, FAMILIES, FOLIC ACID, HEALTH CARE, HEALTH CARE FINANCING, HEALTH CARE PROVISION, HEALTH CENTERS, HEALTH COSTS, HEALTH EQUITY, HEALTH FACILITIES, HEALTH INSURANCE, HEALTH INTERVENTIONS, HEALTH OUTCOMES, HEALTH SECTOR, HEALTH SERVICES, HEALTH SYSTEM, HOSPITALS, HYPERTENSION, ILLNESS, ILLNESSES, IMMUNIZATION, INCOME, INFANTS, INJURIES, INJURY, INTERVENTION, IRON, IRON SUPPLEMENTS, LIVE BIRTHS, LOW BIRTH WEIGHT, MALNUTRITION, MATERNAL HEALTH, MATERNAL MORTALITY, MEASLES, MEASLES IMMUNIZATION, MEDICAL CARE, MEDICAL EXPENSES, MEDICAL PERSONNEL, MIDWIVES, MORTALITY, MORTALITY RATE, MORTALITY RATES, MOTHER, MOTHERS, NEONATAL MORTALITY, NURSES, NUTRITIONAL STATUS, ORT, PATIENT, PHARMACEUTICALS, PNEUMONIA, POSTNATAL CARE, PREGNANT WOMEN, PREVALENCE, PREVENTIVE HEALTH SERVICES, PRIMARY CARE, PRIMARY HEALTH CARE, PRIVATE PHARMACIES, PUBLIC HEALTH, QUALITY OF HEALTH, QUALITY OF HEALTH CARE, SANITATION, SCREENING, SMOKING, SOCIAL EXCLUSION, STUNTING, TOBACCO, TRADITIONAL BIRTH ATTENDANTS, TREATMENT, UNDERWEIGHT CHILDREN, USE OF HEALTH SERVICES, VACCINATION, VACCINES, VITAMIN A, WASTING,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2014/11/23069450/cambodias-main-challenges-improving-health-among-poor https://hdl.handle.net/10986/21061
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