Infant mortality on Sri Lankan plantations from 1887 to 1985
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Date
1987
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Post Graduate Institute of Medicine, Colombo: PGIM .
Abstract
The infant mortality rate is used as a sensitive indicator of the health of the resident plantaion population. The general characteristics of plantations are describe by Laing as follows (Laing 1986): "Plantations developed as a particular form of colonial agriculture. Despite independence coming to many countries, plantations persist, and with them their particular health problems. Plantations depend on imported labour or their descendents working and living within the plantations, and all aspects of life are controlled by the plantation manager. Frequently incomes have been low, housing, water and sanitation inadequate and living conditions difficult; and all these have been reflected in the poor health status of residents on estates". This description faithfully reflects the situation in Sri Lanka prior to 1974. This dissertation attemps to de4scribe the pre-1974 period as well as the rapid improvement thereafter. In the early days of plantations estate worker-houseing was constructed as rows of single rooms, known as single barrack 'lines' or as double rows of rooms reffered to as back-toback or double barrack 'lines'. A family of five or evenmore lived, cooked and slept in this single room. Since the 1940s cottage-type housing has been constructed and the line-type of housing is not constructed any more. Medical facilities are provided on estates mostly through a dispensary. Some estates have a maternity home and a few have a hospital which consists of a maternity ward, a male and a female ward. A few registered medical practitioners and Assistant Medical Practitioners work on estates. But most estates employ an Estate Medical Assistant, a pharmacist or even an apprentice who is medically imqialified. the Estate Medical Assistant qualifies after an examination held by the Ceylon Medical College Council. He has no formal medical training. Fifty percent of those in service are unqualified. Most midwives are Government-trained and registered but some estates still employ unqualified midwives. A new cadre of plantation Family Welfare Supervisors perform liasion activities between the medical staff and the workers. Other functions include maintenance of environmental sanitation, motivation for family planning and health education.
Description
Dissertation: M.Sc.(Community Medicine), Post Graduate Institute of Medicine, Colombo: PGIM , 1987.
Keywords
Infant mortality
Citation
PERERA, RS, Infant mortality on Sri Lankan plantations from 1887 to 1985, Post Graduate Institute of Medicine, Colombo PGIM , 1987: p.