Health in Cambodia
Encyclopedia
Maternal and Child Healthcare
In June 2011, the United Nations Population FundUnited Nations Population Fund
The United Nations Population Fund is a UN organization. The work of the UNFPA involves promotion of the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. This is done through major national and demographic surveys and with population censuses...
released a report on The State of the World's Midwifery. It contained new data on the midwifery workforce and policies relating to newborn and maternal mortality for 58 countries. The 2010 maternal mortality rate per 100,000 births for Cambodia is 290. This is compared with 265.8 in 2008 and 409.1 in 1990. The under 5 mortality rate, per 1,000 births is 90 and the neonatal mortality as a percentage of under 5's mortality is 34. The aim of this report is to highlight ways in which the Millennium Development Goals
Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...
can be achieved, particularly Goal 4 – reduce child mortality and Goal 5 – improve maternal death. In Cambodia the number of midwives per 1,000 live births is 6 and 1 in 110 shows us the lifetime risk of death for pregnant women.
Cambodia has been certified as a polio free country since October 2000.
Ratanakiri
Health indicators in RatanakiriRatanakiri
Ratanakiri is a province in northeastern Cambodia that borders Laos to the north, Vietnam to the east, Mondulkiri Province to the south, and Stung Treng Province to the west. The province extends from the mountains of the Annamite Range in the north, across a hilly plateau between the Tonle San...
are the worst in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. Malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
, tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, intestinal parasites, cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
, diarrhea
Diarrhea
Diarrhea , also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having three or more loose or liquid bowel movements per day. It is a common cause of death in developing countries and the second most common cause of infant deaths worldwide. The loss of fluids through diarrhea can cause dehydration and...
, and vaccine
Vaccine
A vaccine is a biological preparation that improves immunity to a particular disease. A vaccine typically contains an agent that resembles a disease-causing microorganism, and is often made from weakened or killed forms of the microbe or its toxins...
-preventable diseases such as measles
Measles
Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
are endemic. Rattanakiri has Cambodia's highest rates of maternal and child mortality
Child mortality
Child mortality, also known as under-5 mortality, refers to the death of infants and children under the age of five. In 2010, 7.6 million children under five died , down from 8.1 million in 2009, 8.8 million in 2008, and 12.4 million in 1990. About half of child deaths occur in Africa....
, with 22.9% of children dying before the age of five. Ratanakiri also has the country's highest rates of severe malnutrition
Malnutrition
Malnutrition is the condition that results from taking an unbalanced diet in which certain nutrients are lacking, in excess , or in the wrong proportions....
. Ratanakiri residents' poor health can be attributed to a variety of factors, including poverty, physical remoteness, language and cultural barriers that prevent Khmer Loeu
Khmer Loeu
The Khmer Loeu are the Mon–Khmer highland tribes in Cambodia. Although the origins of this group are not clear, some believe that the Mon–Khmer-speaking tribes were part of the long migration of these people from the northwest. The Austronesian-speaking groups, Rade and Jarai, apparently came to...
from obtaining medical care, poor infrastructure and access to water, lack of accountability in the medical community, and exacerbating environmental factors such as natural resource degradation, decreasing food production, and internal migration. The province has one referral hospital, 10 health centers, and 17 health posts. Medical equipment and supplies are minimal, and most health facilities are staffed by nurses or midwives, who are often poorly trained and irregularly paid.
Statistics
Note: These statistics are aggregated for both Ratanakiri and MondulkiriMondulkiri
- References :...
provinces.
Vaccinations
- DPT1: 44%
- DPT2: 24%
- DPT3: 19%
- Measles: 39%
Nutrition
- Children moderately underweight: 35%
- Children severely underweight: 19%
Access to health care
- Visited health facility in last year: 13%
Sexual health
- Age at first intercourse: 18.0
- Age at First Marriage: 18.6
- Knows that a healthy person can have AIDS: 78%
- Knows that condoms can be used to prevent AIDS: 33%
- Uses any method of birth control: 8%
- Uses condoms: 1%
- Uses modern method of birth control: 7%
- Delivery Assistance by Doctor: 1%
- Delivery Assistance by SBA: 14%
See also
- HIV/AIDS in CambodiaHIV/AIDS in CambodiaAfter the first case of HIV was detected inCambodia in 1991, prevalence of infectionincreased steadily to a high of 2 percent in 1998.In the general population, the prevalence declinedto 0.5 percent in 2009, down from 1.2 percent in...
- Ministry of Health, CambodiaMinistry of Health, CambodiaThe Ministry of Health is the government ministry responsible for governing healthcare, the healthcare industry, public health and health-related NGOs in Cambodia. The Ministry governs and regulates the activity of medical professionals, hospitals and clinics in the country. The current Minister...
- National Malaria Center of CambodiaNational Malaria Center of CambodiaThe National Center for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria Control is a government agency responsible for directing and supervising the control of vector-borne disease in Cambodia. In conjunction with disease control the Center creates health education programs and manages scientific research...
- Cambodian Red CrossCambodian Red CrossThe Cambodian Red Cross is the largest humanitarian organization in Cambodia. Established on the 18 February 1955, it is officially recognized by the Royal Government as the primary auxiliary to the public authorities in humanitarian services...