OECD: Mexican healthcare system is lagging behind

Among members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) , Mexico is well below average in terms of health, showing a deficit in hospital levels for all three levels of care. The number of beds available for patients is insufficient and the level of care in different states is not consistent, stated Francisco Pérez Fayad , national coordinator of all 31 healthcare diagnose forums in the country.

He highlighted that marginalized communities were lagging furthest behind, lacking doctors and nurses. Mexico’s total health expenditure is one of the lowest among OECD members, based on the conclusions reached at forums throughout the country, which were conducted as part of an initiative promoted by senator Cora Cecilia Pineda to assess Mexico’s healthcare status, gathering over 9,000 health experts .

The doctors agreed that it was very different to receive medical care in Mexico City , where there are 2.4 beds per every 1,000 inhabitants , than in the state of Chiapas , where there is only one bed per every 2,000 inhabitants .

“Hospital capacity shows a major deficit. On average, there are only 1.5 beds per every 1,000 inhabitants in the country ," he commented.

“Our healthcare system’s installed capacity is inefficient in providing efficient care, enable early diagnoses and treatments, and treat diseases. There are places where people have never even seen a health center,” he explained.

As for healthcare recommendations issued by the OECD, individual healthcare expenses in Mexico are well below average, as well as the number of doctors, nurses, and hospital beds.

While the organization has claimed that a country should spend at least USD$4,000 a year on medical care for each citizen, Mexico spends less than a quarter of said amount: Barely USD$1,030.

The number of doctors recommended per every 1,000 citizens is of 3.4; In Mexico, there are only 2.4. Furthermore, while the OECD recommends that there should be 9 per every thousand citizens, in Mexico, there are only 2.8.

Mexico also showed one of the lowest life expectancies at birth (75.4), even though it is still 14 years higher than in the 1970s. To make things worse, Mexico’s obesity rates are extremely high. According to an OECD report, 33% of Mexican adults suffer from obesity and 73% are overweight .

Although access to health care has improved, following the creation of the “Seguro Popular” public health insurance, Mexico’s infrastructure development for this sector has mainly focused on big cities

The group of experts behind the forums stressed that the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador should channel financial resources for purposes of hospital infrastructure development so that the country can ensure coverage throughout the territory.

FAO: 24 million people afflicted with obesity in Mexico

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