Number of ailing persons in Delhi lowest among all states

New Delhi, Feb 15 (UNI) The national capital has the lowest morbidity rate in the country.

Releasing a report on 'Morbidity, Healthcare and Condition of Aged persons in Delhi' here today, Delhi Finance and Planning Minister A K Walia said morbidity rate in the national capital was estimated at 17 per 1,000 people as compared to 99 at the national level.

The proportion of ailing persons in Delhi was the lowest in the country. It was 107 in Punjab, 87 in Haryana, 72 in Rajasthan and 108 in Uttar Pradesh.

Morbidity in Delhi in the age group of 0-14 years was 18 per thousand population and nine in the age group of 15-29 years, 12 in the age group of 30-44 years, 29 in the age group of 45-59 years and 53 in the age group of 60 years and above.

The percentage of persons reported illness in Delhi reduced from 3.1 per cent in 1995-96 to 1.7 per cent during 2004. However, at the national level, the percentage of persons reported illness increased from 4.1 per cent to 9.9 per cent during the corresponding period.

The report was prepared by Delhi government's Directorate of Economics and Statistics and was based on the 60th round of National Sample Survey conducted during January-June 2004.

The survey revealed that in 18 per cent of the total outdoor cases, treatment was taken from government hospitals and the average expenditure for each case on treatment was Rs 545. Total number of cases of hospitalisation was estimated at 2.53 lakh. The rate of hospitalisation in case of male was 16 per 1,000 and in case of female it was 17 per thousand.

Out of 2.53 lakh people hospitalised, 1.19 lakh were hospitalised in government hospitals and 1.34 lakh in private ones. Therefore, out of total hospitalised cases in Delhi, about 47 per cent were admitted in public hospitals and 53 per cent in private ones. In public hospitals, 89 per cent were admitted in free wards and remaining in paying general wards/special wards. Whereas, in private hospitals, only three per cent were in free wards and the remaining were in paying wards.

The average duration of stay in hospitals in a year was ten days.

The maximum cases of hospitalisation was due to heart disease (12.4 per cent) followed by 9.7 per cent due to accident, 9.5 per cent due to fever of unknown type, 8.3 per cent due to diarrhea/dysentery, 6.1 per cent due to kidney, 4.6 per cent due to cancer, 3.9 per cent due to hypertension, 2.4 per cent due to neurological problems.

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