By: Ruby Setara
Sometimes when we get used to something long enough we forget that it’s even there, like when a construction company has been fixing the roads outside your house and it has been there for a long time. You might wake up in the morning and not even notice there’s a person drilling into the sidewalk. It’s amazing how many details we miss everyday.
Beyond construction, there are a few other things you grow used to: like your alarm clock and the way your room is. Even when you enter a hospital, you grow used to how the nurses and doctors have to give you medical attention. You grow so used to it that you perceive it as neglect to your rights should you not receive the medical attention you demand. You forget that in some places around the world, access to good health care and treatment at hospitals is a privilege, not a right.
In third-world countries such as Bangladesh, access to exceptional healthcare depends on your financial situation. For example, if you fell down the stairs and broke your arm and leg and went to a Bangladeshi hospital, they’d ask for an outrageous amount of money before they even tell you your diagnosis. Even if you protested, begged, or cried, the doctors simply wouldn’t treat you, all because you didn’t have the money.
Geographically, Bangladesh has a higher population density than Russia. That means there are millions of people living on a tiny splash of land roughly the size of Iowa; the majority of residents live in huts in villages with low quality of education and health care. Many who live in these poor neighborhoods are poorly educated, so when they seek medical help, they don’t get the best treatment. Oftentimes, the doctors will charge outrageous amounts with additional unnecessary costs; they’re cheating their patients. The doctors can also give them a false diagnosis that has a higher cost than what they’re really supposed to be paying for. But if you are an upper class person with money to your name, the doctors would take care of you as you would be treated in the USA; they’d tell you everything they’re doing, have courtesy and respect, and give you the vibe that they actually care about your well-being. Shouldn’t respect towards patients be a worldwide standard instead of just the first-world countries?
Isn’t the division of social classes literally hurting people?
Universally, no one should be denied healthcare because they don’t have enough money to cover the cost. If a person seeks medical help, she or he shouldn’t be denied it because she or he cannot afford the cost. The division of social classes shouldn’t affect the quality of healthcare and whether you even receive it or not in the first place. Access to reliable health care is a human right.
photo credit: http://cdn.doctorswithoutborders.org/sites/usa/files/dsc_7165-Bangladesh.jpg
The organization, Doctors Without Borders in action in Bangladesh
Is there a solution? Are people helping? Definitely! An organization called Doctors Without Borders is critically acclaimed for providing healthcare to areas in the world hit hard by wars, famine, or inadequate health care. The photo above shows a person with the organization gathering information in a community in Bangladesh. Doctors Without Borders goes around the globe dedicated to one thing: helping others out.
How can you help? You might not be a doctor, but you definitely can consider a career in medicine and nursing and take a post in a place where healthcare is a necessity and you genuinely care about the wellbeing of your fellow human beings.
If you’re really not into becoming a doctor but want to help those who are struggling with other issues, you can always volunteer at the International Red Cross, a group that is dedicated to distributing food and clothing, organizing homeless shelters for those displaced by disasters and massacres, and much more. There, you can play an active role in helping your community beyond the borders of the USA. Although helping other people in different places seems like such a distant task, those who receive help will be grateful. You can even help people right in your neighborhood by holding a neighborhood-wide food and clothing drive and shipping what you collect to a homeless shelter, a place struck by a natural disaster, or even someone you know who needs help. And on a personal level, if you know someone who is struggling on the inside, dealing with mental illnesses or self-conflicts, it is always appreciated even if you simply stand by them in times of need. It may seem like you’re not doing much, but a little goes a long way. No matter where you help or who you help or how you help, at least one person is grateful for your services.