Integration of Ayurvedic Medicine in Public Health Delivery System at primary level for UHC - An Evidence Based Study

Background: In developing country like India it is very difficult for people of low socio-economic status to get access to healthcare and in case they seek healthcare, cost of medicines becomes major reason for out of pocket expenditure, as all the medicines are not available in PHC. Objective: To collate Ayurvedic medicine with Allopathic medicine to provide choice of treatment to patient in view of UHC. Methods: A literature review on Ayurvedic drugs (single drug and formulations) was done after prioritizing the diseases for our study based on National programs and other frequently seen diseases in Primary healthcare (PHC). Evidence was collected in two ways, first by pure Ayurvedic evidence based on Samhitas and second was based on modern techniques and then tabulated. Results: Ayurvedic drug list for Primary Health Care was formulated based on available modern as well as Classical evidence and tabulated in the form of a table. Conclusion: Ayurvedic drugs can be integrated in PHC to provide universal health care at primary level