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Clean water is important for good health
Photo: Jim Holmes/Oxfam |
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Healthy |
Many poor people don't have proper medical care. In poor countries,
there are often very few doctors. Some people have to walk for hours
or even days to see one.
In some countries, you have to pay for medicines, to see a doctor
or to go to hospital, and poor people can't afford it.
How does Oxfam help?
One of the best ways to help people stay in good health is to train
local health workers. We train people, so that they can care for
sick people and teach their communities about good health and hygiene.
We also work to improve countries' existing health services. We
help people to have clean drinking water. This is very important
for good health, as so many diseases are caused by polluted drinking
water.
With its Cut the Cost campaign, Oxfam worked to get the
big companies that make medicines to sell them to poor countries
more cheaply, so that poor people can have the treatment they need.
According to UN statistics, there are 298 people per doctor
in Belgium. In Malawi, there are 50,000 people per doctor.
Source: Human Development Report 1997, UNDP
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