Political Economy of Pre and Post Natal Health Care System (System Analysis at Micro Level)

Abstract

The current research aims at exploring the political economy of the prenatal and postnatal health care system. In this thesis, the researcher’s main focus is on the involvement of political economy and its effect on pre-natal and post-natal health care systems. For that purpose, this research explores the transition caused by the political economy both in the prenatal and postnatal health system. Consequently, the research examined different reasons and the results of the involvement of political economy. However, the research not only focuses on political economy but also on the precautionary measures during the pre- and post-natal health care systems in the selected field area. Furthermore, to investigate the pre-natal and post-natal healthcare system, this research goes under the study of all the factors enabling the transition via political economy: the doctors; the pharmaceuticals; the patients; the families; and the role of industrialization in the selected area of study. To investigate this phenomenon, a Qualitative research approach has been used and the field data was collected in the Choice village of Tehsil kalarkahar, District Chakwal of province Punjab. The data was collected through 50 in-depth interviews and participant observation. The researcher has also participated in the conversation with the doctors and patients during the prenatal and postnatal visits. The data has been analyzed in the light of the world system theory that people are used as a commodity by the doctors and pharmaceutical industries for economic gains. The findings of all the data collected showed that in the last decade people of the choice village have gained somewhat awareness of better health care due to the impact of industrialization in that area. With industrialization comes job opportunities and labor employment, which further enhances finances and generates sources that require good financial means. Hence, a better way of living and education for a coming generation is promised. Therefore, when there is a transition in different aspects of living, better health is also given importance. A new surge in the understanding and importance of the modern health care systems started. It was noticed from the analysis of the data that women started to go for their prenatal and postnatal checkups to the doctors and even act upon the doctor’s advice and treatments. It is through this change in the attitude of the people as with time they are being psychologically fed about the modern methods as more effective, instant, reliable, and curable as opposed to the traditional ones being less reliable, and not up to the modern standards, this study has explored the role of political economy in the pre and post-natal health v care system. Hence doctors with the help of pharmaceutical industries influence the patients by recommending different tests and medications as extremely important for a particular situation. On part of people, the Political economy is seen to be involved in the preference of the gender of the newborn. By that, it means that the study showed that people of the village directly or indirectly gave importance to the baby boy because of patriarchy. Findings showed an inclination towards more frequent visits when a baby is born or has some issue. They would blindly spend money on medications and checkups on the boy’s health as compared to the girl. So in this way, people also gave profit to the pharmaceutical industries and doctors thus generating a good political economy. Findings also showed that although people in this area believe in the modern health care systems, few people do not follow this modern health system because of their poverty. Due to scarce financial sources, they are helpless and have fewer means to opt for the modern health care systems so they mostly follow the traditional prenatal and postnatal health care systems. The overall research establishes the fact that for the past few decades, there has been a remarkable shift from the traditional medicinal methods to the modern ones, and from time-to-time discoveries /technology are accelerating it ever since. Both health care system prevails in the society. People who have good financial condition are being attracted and convince to adopt the new. Those who are not financially well do not follow these modern systems but they are psychologically stuck and strongly believe in the present system. The findings may also be analyzed at the macro level, the world system theory presented by Immanuel Wallerstein in 1970 which is the multidisciplinary macro-scale approach to world history and social change that stresses that the world-system (and not nation-states) should be the primary (but not exclusive) unit of social analysis.