Health in Chad


A new measure of expected human capital calculated for 195 countries from 1990 to 2016 and defined for each birth cohort as the expected years lived from age 20 to 64 years and adjusted for educational attainment, learning or education quality, and functional health status was published by The Lancet in September 2018. Chad had the third lowest level of expected human capital countries with 2 health, education, and learning-adjusted expected years lived between age 20 and 64 years. This was an improvement over 1990 when its score was 2.

Healthcare

In 1987 Chad had 4 hospitals, 44 smaller health centers, 1 UNICEF clinic, and 239 other clinics—half under religious auspices. Many regional hospitals were damaged or destroyed in fighting, and health services barely existed in 1987. Public health care expenditures were estimated at 2.9% of GDP. As of 2004, it was estimated that there were fewer than 3 physicians, 15 nurses, and 2 midwives per 100,000 people.

Endemic diseases

All medicine, antibiotic, and vaccine imports must be authorized by the Ministry of Health. The most common diseases are schistosomiasis, leprosy, malaria, spinal meningitis, tuberculosis, and yaws, as well as malnutrition. Immunization rates in 1999 were very low for children up to one year of age: diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus, 21 percent, and measles, 30 percent. In 2000, 27 percent of the population had access to safe drinking water and 29 percent had adequate
sanitation.

Maternal and child health care

The 2010 maternal mortality rate per 100,000 births for Chad is 1,200. This is compared with 1065.2 in 2008 and 891 in 1990. The under 5 mortality rate, per 1,000 births is 209 and the neonatal mortality as a percentage of under 5's mortality is 22. In Chad the number of midwives per 1,000 live births is 0.4 and the lifetime risk of death for pregnant women 1 in 14.
As of 2000, only 4 percent of married women used any form of contraception. According to a 2013 UNICEF report, 44% of women in Chad had undergone female genital mutilation. The average life expectancy in 2005 was estimated at 47.18 years.

HIV/AIDS

The HIV/AIDS prevalence was 4.80 per 100 adults in 2003. As of 2004, there were approximately 200,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in the country. There were an estimated 18,000 deaths from AIDS in 2003.