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Zimbabwe International Health Insurance / Healthcare System
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 Zimbabwe,
formerly known as the British colony of Rhodesia, is a landlocked
southern African country. It borders South Africa, Botswana,
Zambia and Mozambique. Zimbabwe initially declared independence
from the UK in 1965; it was finally recognized as an independent
nation in 1980. Zimbabwe’s history since independence has been
troubled. Political instability and accusations of corruption
leveled at political officials, coupled with hyperinflation and
seizing of private property have combined to scare off foreign
investment and has led to a number of economic and political
sanctions. Zimbabwe has also suffered serious environmental
degradation, including major deforestation and loss of wildlife
through poaching. However, Zimbabwe still boasts incredible
natural beauty with varied topography, including Mt. Nyangani in
the east and the world-famous Victoria Falls in the northwest of
the country.
As is unfortunately typical for poor sub Saharan African
countries, life expectancy in Zimbabwe is very low; 47 years for
males and 50 for females. Total annual per capita health
expenditure in Zimbabwe is only USD56, about half of the already
low African average. Due to hyperinflation and infrastructure
difficulties, more detailed figures for Zimbabwe’s national health
accounts are not available after 2001. In that year, government
expenditure made up 38.4 percent of total health spending; among
private health spending, private insurance made up 28.8 percent,
and about half was out of pocket expenditure. It seems likely that
out of pocket spending has largely increased as a proportion of
total health spending in the past decade.
Zimbabwe’s public health workforce is seriously understaffed, even
relative to the low figures for Africa. There are only 1.6 doctors
and 7.2 nurses and midwives for every 10,000 Zimbabweans, a little
more than two thirds of the regional norm.
Communicable diseases also have a serious negative effect on
Zimbabwean health. HIV and AIDS are major problems all over
Africa, and this is particularly true in Zimbabwe, where 143 of
every 1,000 adults is infected, nearly triple the already high
regional average. Tuberculosis infection rates of 431 per 100,000
people are also extremely high; although slightly less than the
African average, this figure is more than double the global norm.
The WHO Global Alert and Response team has also issued a series of
bulletins about cholera outbreaks in the past decade, most
recently in 2009.
Despite its economic difficulties, Zimbabwean utilization of
antenatal, birth and infant health care are actually far above the
regional norms. Sixty percent of births are attended by skilled
health care personnel, although this figure masks some inequity as
among the poorest fifth of all Zimbabweans, only 46 percent have
access to professional neonatal care.
In terms of public health indicators, urban Zimbabweans enjoy
nearly universal access to improved drinking water sources,
although this drops to about three-fourths of inhabitants of rural
areas. Less than half of Zimbabweans have access to improved
sanitation facilities; and only about 40 percent of rural
residents.
In the late 1990s, in conjunction with the UN, Zimbabwe has
outlined Millennium Development Goals related to the provision of
health care. For Zimbabwe, these were: eradicate extreme poverty
and hunger; reduce child mortality; improve maternal health;
combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; ensure environmental
sustainability; and develop a global partnership for development.
Given Zimbabwe’s problems with inflation and political instability
over the past decade, there has been limited success in achieving
these goals.
While Zimbabwe’s political situation and environmental decline
have reduced its appeal as a tourist destination, there remains
much to appeal to the adventurous traveler, including the
aforementioned Victoria Falls. However, travel to equatorial
Africa is not without health risk, and the US Center for Disease
Control have issued a set of guidelines to prepare visitors to
Zimbabwe. The first recommendation is to visit a physician or
clinic specializing in travel medicine four to six weeks before
departure to ensure that immunizations are up to date. This
includes routine jabs, as well as vaccination against hepatitis A
and B, typhoid and rabies if there will be contact with wild
animals.
Like much of the region, Zimbabwe is also prone to outbreaks of
malaria. Wearing long-sleeved clothing, sleeping under mosquito
nets and using insect repellent with DEET are all suggested.
Furthermore, prophylactic use of anti-malarial pills may also be
recommended. These should be purchased before travel, as local
supply is uncertain. Atovaquone, proguanil, doxycycline and
mefloquone are all effective in Zimbabwe, but note that
chloroquine is not. Other insect-borne diseases like dengue fever,
river blindness and African sleeping sickness also affect
Zimbabweans.
While most travelers are focused on rare tropical diseases, the
most common traveler’s complaint in Zimbabwe is common around the
world – gastrointestinal distress. Avoiding raw and undercooked
food and drinking only bottled water should be sufficient to avoid
problems; although over the counter medication may be administered
in acute cases. Persistent discomfort should be treated by a
physician.
As with many less developed countries, Zimbabwean health care is
extremely poor, and shortages of basic pharmaceuticals are common.
Serious health emergencies will require expensive evacuation to
Johannesburg or air transport Europe. Hence, it is important to
ensure that your travel health insurance coverage will cover these
possibilities.
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Zimbabwe International Health Insurance |
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Globalsurance is available to assist with your Zimbabwe international health
insurance needs. Globalsurance’s experienced team of professionals
is on ready 24 hours per day, 7 days a week to make sure that you
are informed on options for individuals, your families or tour
groups. Our policies cover all kinds of situations, including
maternity and transportation. Please contact one of our
Globalsurance advisors today and find out what international
health insurance plan is right for you.
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