Mauritius

The island republic of Mauritius, located east of Madagascar, in the Indian Ocean, was settled by Arab and Malay seafarers during the 10th century, with Portuguese arriving in 1505. In 1638 the Dutch established a permanent settlement on the island, and it was then occupied by the French who called it Ile de France. The French used the island to develop a sugar industry, reliant on slave labor, and the early healthcare facilities were extremely primitive, and entirely for the European population. The British occupied it starting in 1810, but allowed the French to continue to use their language and French laws.

The British established a hospital at St. Louis, the administrative capital of the island, later renamed the National Hospital. In 1898 the Mauritian Medical and Health Department started publishing annual reports on the medical situation in the country. Early medical problems were dominated by malaria, tuberculosis and also cholera, but since World War II, with increased expenditure on healthcare, and on prevention of diseases, there was a massive cut in the number of cases of malaria, tuberculosis and cholera – the malaria eradication program running from 1948 until 1952 being highly successful.

In 1968 Mauritius became independent, and three years later, in November 1971 the 3rd Commonwealth [Page 1073]Medical Conference was held at Mauritius. Visiting doctors commented favorably on the facilities at the National Hospital and the Princess Margaret Orthopedic Center. In 1972 there were 27 doctors on the island. By the early 1980s there were 30 clinics in villages which provided training to people in areas of nutrition and child care, and by 1987 there were 80 doctors covering the island, with a population just over 1 million—Mauritius now has a population of 1,219,220 (2006). However during the period from 1972 to 1987, the number of hospital beds per 100,000 people fell, from 328 to 285. Part of this was because better outpatient care was available, and also there were less people suffering from diseases which needed them to be isolated.

By 1993 the entire population of Mauritius had easy access to drinkable water, and the daily calorie intake by 1987 was 124 percent of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization recommended requirement. This has risen in recent years leading to problems of people suffering from obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Because of its relative isolation, Mauritius has generally been free of the health problems that have affected many other countries. However, in 2006 and 2007 there have been studies of the prevalence of the Chikungunya virus among travelers to Mauritius.