PHC Full-form- What is the Full Form of PHC?

PHC full form is Primary Health Care that primarily focuses on providing quality health care services to people through socially acceptable technology. It was introduced with an approach to treat health problems by going beyond the traditional healthcare system. PHC aims at alleviating illness not only by offering the right treatment but also taking into account other factors like lifestyle, access to health services and environment in determining an individual’s well-being. 

What is PHC Full Form?

As discussed above, PHC full form is Primary Health Care, and it's a holistic approach to offering basic healthcare services to the people. According to the World Health Organization, PHC is initiated to take into account the health care of communities by identifying the needs of families, individuals and communities. 

One of the major objectives laid to the foundation of primary health care is to enable people access to primary care services that are crucial for their overall well-being. PHC works on the concept of understanding the issues causing specific diseases and trying to prevent the root cause to improve quality of life. We have prepared this article to offer insight into the principles, goals and significance of PHC. 

Highlights on PHC

Principles and Goals of Primary Health Care 

PHC, full form of which is primary health care, aims at obtaining improved health service for all, and it is constantly working towards achieving this primary objective. To help fulfill the defined objectives of primary health care, the WHO has set some of the basic principles which will ultimately lead a country in improving the health of people. Below are the key principles followed in PHC.

• Organizing health care services based on people's needs and expectations.
• Encouraging and increasing stakeholder participation in health care initiatives.
• Eliminating social disparities and making accessible healthcare for all.
• Integration of health in various sectors.
• Pursuing collaborative models of leadership reforms.

Maintaining an efficacious healthcare system lies on fulfilling certain goals or objectives that are mentioned below

Figure1: Pillars of PHC

• Health human resource development: To ensure that health care services are accessible to people, it is crucial to recruit and train nurses, physicians and community health workers so that every individual can achieve optimal health.
• Equitable distribution of health care: Health care services should be provided to an individual, family and community irrespective of their caste, age, gender, social status and colour.
• Use of technology: To ensure proper treatment is provided to people, it is essential to check whether a health care center has a proper supply of equipment like diagnosis tools, refrigerators to store vaccines or body scanners. 
• Community participation: For making health care services accessible to all, PHC emphasizes community participation to achieve sustainability and self-sufficiency. 

Objectives of the Primary Health Care

Here’s a list of objectives based on which various primary healthcare centers work.

• To support the establishment of public health policies.
• To enhance community participation for achieving improved quality of life.
• Organize health care programs for ensuring the healthy growth of children and youth.
• To support the approach of achieving integrated, evidence-based and comprehensive primary health care services.

History and Development of PHC

The healthcare sector of a country forms a crucial development indicator, the healthier the people, the better the quality of life. If we trace back the history of primary health care (PHC full form) then the year 1978 seems to be a significant phase for its formation. Before 1978, health services couldn’t fulfill the goal of making basic health care services accessible to every individual. 

After the failure of various initiatives to strengthen the global healthcare system, WHO and UNICEF joined leagues in a conference known as Alma-Ata to finally establish primary healthcare so that people can be treated without any disparities. 

The conference clarified that present disparities identified between or within developing and developed countries are not acceptable. Alma-Ata conference founded Primary Health Care with the prime goal of attaining “Health for all”. 

Why Do Countries Give Primary Relevance to PHC?

Both developing as well as developed countries across the globe are giving a lot of relevance to primary health care. If you are still wondering about the reason behind the importance of PHC, the full form of which is primary health care, then go through the below-mentioned points.

• PHC helps a community, family or individual improve their health by diagnosing a health problem without any disparities.
• It enables people who belong to low economic strata to access healthcare services as PHC is the most cost-effective service.
• For the achievement of a nation’s complete socio-economic development, addressing the primary care problems seem necessary.
• Primary health care aims at improving quality of life by setting safety standards and treating people equally.
• The PHC works on the motto of integrating palliative, curative, preventive and rehabilitative health care services.
• The main purpose enforced by the Alma-Ata conference is “health for all”.
• It helps people to get access to basic health care services easily.

Are there any Loopholes Posing Challenges to PHC?

Though the formation of PHC led to various development projects to improve the health of people globally, there are certain loopholes found in the system which are somehow hindering adequate access to healthcare services. Let’s check them out.

Shortage of Caregivers

To alleviate health issues, and ensure every individual can access healthcare services, sufficient staff like nurses, doctors, and other caregivers is required. In most areas, especially rural parts of India, there has been a shortage of trained professionals who can address the health issues of people.

Limited choice

Patients in some regions face issues in receiving the care they need for their specific health issues. This is because patients cannot choose physicians that best suit their healthcare needs. It is perhaps another emerging issue prohibiting the development of primary health care (PHC full form).

The disparity in care quality

There have been some disparities identified in the care services offered by each healthcare practitioner. In many regions, people face problems when reaping the full benefits of care services. Adequate steps like peer reviewing need to be implemented to eliminate disparities.