Despite government health promotion initiatives, the life expectancy of Taiwanese Aboriginals and physicians-to-population-ratio figures indicate that more work needs to be done.
"The average life expectancy among Taiwanese Aborigines is about eight years less than that of the rest of the population," said Medical Association for the Indigenous People of Taiwan president Ko Ying-chin (葛應欽) at the 2003 Austronesian International Convention in Taipei.
He said that a decade ago the life-expectancy discrepancy had been 10 years, but improved health policies over the past few years had helped to close the gap.
"I'm pushing the government to bring the difference down to seven years within the next five years," Ko said.
According to the Executive Yuan's Council of Indigenous Affairs' records, the life expectancy of Taiwanese Aborigines is 63 for males and 73 for females. Corresponding figures for the general Taiwanese population are 73 for males and 79 for females.
Ko said that the World Health Organization had advised that at least one qualified physician should be available for every 1,000 people.
However, physicians among Taiwan's Aboriginal communities serve 3,000 individuals each. In comparison, 700 individuals receive treatment from each doctor in Taiwanese communities.
Ko said that the integrated delivery system, a National Health Insurance program, sends doctors to Aborigine communities to provide health services.
Substance abuse continues to be a problem among indigenous groups in Taiwan. According to National Taiwan University professor Hu Hai-kuo (胡海國), 8 percent to 14 percent of Taiwan's indigenous population abuse alcohol. Furthermore, 6 percent to 11 percent have clinically been diagnosed with alcohol dependency.
"Right now, we only have three hospitals with alcoholism rehabilitation wards. Under the current health policies, alcoholism is screened for and treated under the general integrated screenings," Ko said.
He said that the community-integrated screenings were implemented three years ago as a means of diagnosing and treating different illnesses in Aboriginal communities during one check-up.
"We are also working to prevent alcoholism by educating habitual users through 59 health empowerment centers we've set up in Aboriginal communities around Taiwan. Still more work needs to be done in this area, especially given the cultural differences that lead to the prevalence of alcoholism among indigenous people," Ko said.
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