Rheumatoid Arthritis, or what is commonly known as ‘Rajje Bali’ is a concept that many are familiar with, more due to hearing about it so often, but only those who struggle with it are faced with the reality of finding a doctor that can give them comfort to the back pain and the musculoskeletal discomfort that come with it.
One thing that surely improves the standard of living in any corner of the world is access to good healthcare. While we often take our health and the healthcare facilities available to us for granted, it is only when we need it the most that we come to realise the importance of it.
In the Maldives, while the healthcare sector has improved tenfold from what it was a decade ago, one common issue that many Maldivians, especially the elderly faced still remained inaccessible in the Maldives. Rheumatoid Arthritis, or what is commonly known as ‘Rajje Bali’ is a concept that many are familiar with, more due to hearing about it so often, but only those who struggle with it are faced with the reality of finding a doctor that can give them comfort to the back pain and the musculoskeletal discomfort that come with it.
While many are unaware that it is an actual condition, for generations people have been settling with calling it the Maldivian disease, often going above and beyond looking for a treatment for it. This search often ends up being expensive due to the need to travel abroad looking for a good doctor who would believe and diagnose these symptoms, which can be dismissed easily. In addition to the discomfort of back and muscle pain, people who have rheumatoid arthritis often also have symptoms such as swelling, joint pain, fever and fatigue, which more often than not makes day-to-day life extremely hard to go through.
With people self-diagnosing and seeking treatment for this condition for ages, the Maldives has finally acknowledged the growing demand for a facility that caters to the needs of those with rheumatoid arthritis or Rajje Bali with the establishment of the Pain Clini which is finally seeking to offer a holistic approach to those who are challenged with this condition.
As the symptoms and severity of each patient may vary, the Pain Clinic does a consultation and gives a personalised treatment based on the patient. These treatments may vary from restorative therapy, and ultrasound-guided injections to nerve-blocking medications. As of now, Pain Clini has a specialised GP who offers consultations three times a week while catering to patients throughout the whole week in order to help them through pain management.
With this condition being common among Maldivians, the Pain Clinic is also covered by the national insurance scheme Aasandha, removing the need to spend a hefty amount of money to seek treatment for the condition.
