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Health in Afghanistan is in need of improvement due to the country being in a state of civil war for the last 30 years. However, since 2002 when the United Nations began focusing on the situation in Afghanistan, after Operation Enduring Freedom, some improvment was made to the health system of the country.
Beginning in 1979, military conflict destroyed the health system of Afghanistan. Most medical professionals left the country during the 1980s and 90s, and all medical training programs ceased. In 2003 there were 11 physicians and 18 nurses per 100,000 population, and the per capita health expenditure was US$28. In 2004 Afghanistan had one medical facility for every 27,000 people, and some centers were responsible for as many as 300,000 people. In 2004 international organizations provided a large share of medical care. An estimated one-quarter of the population had no access to health care.
At the same time, the physical and psychological effects of war have substantially increased the need for medical care. Infant, child, and maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the world(about 154 per 1,000 which is the third highest in the world after Sierra Leone and Angola and by some estemates as high as 275 per 1,000). In rural areas, one in five children dies before reaching age five. Because of poor sanitation and insufficient potable water supply, infectious and parasitic diseases such as malaria and diarrhea are very common. Malnutrition and poor nutrition also are pervasive. The drought of 1999–2002 exacerbated these conditions. An estimated 800,000 Afghans are disabled.
No statistics are available on the prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, in 2006 the United Nations Development Programme estimated that an HIV/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic could occur in Afghanistan because of the high incidence ofintravenous drug use, unsafe blood transfusion procedures, large numbers of refugees, poor health facilities, and illiteracy. According to Afghanistan’s National Aids Control Program (NACP), as of late 2008, 504 cases of HIV/AIDS have been documented. In the same year it was estimated that up to 2,500 people may be infected nationwide.
Despite large-scale international assistance, in 2004 the World Health Organization did not expect Afghanistan’s health indicators to improve substantially for at least a decade.
