Understanding Population Coverage by Community Health Centres (CHCs)

In the public healthcare system, different levels of health centres are established to cater to the health needs of the population based on the number of people and geographical area.

These centres form a hierarchy, starting from the most peripheral unit serving a smaller population to larger centres covering a wider population and offering more specialized services.

The typical structure includes:

• Sub-Centre (SC): This is the most basic unit, often covering a population of around 3,000 to 5,000 people.
• Primary Health Centre (PHC): A PHC is established to provide comprehensive primary healthcare. It typically covers a population of about 20,000 to 30,000 people.
• Community Health Centre (CHC): A CHC acts as a referral centre for 4 PHCs and provides specialist services.

The population covered by a Community Health Centre (CHC) is significantly larger than that covered by a Sub-Centre or a Primary Health Centre. According to the standards, a CHC is designed to cover a population of:

• 80,000 in hilly, tribal, or difficult-to-reach areas.
• 120,000 in plain areas.

Therefore, the population coverage range for a Community Health Centre is generally stated as 80,000 to 120,000.

Let's look at the options provided:

• 15000 to 45000: This range does not match the standard CHC coverage.
• 20000 to 30000: This range corresponds to the population covered by a Primary Health Centre (PHC).
• 3000 to 5000: This range corresponds to the population covered by a Sub-Centre (SC).
• 80000 to 120000: This range matches the standard population coverage for a Community Health Centre (CHC), accounting for variations between plain and difficult areas.

Based on the established norms for public health infrastructure, a Community Health Centre serves a population ranging from 80,000 to 120,000 people.