Health Corner

Nutrition Symposium

While there is a well enunciated National Nutrition Policy and National Rural health Mission,there is also a need for upscaling of interventions with proven efficacy,like exclusive breast feeding for the first six months,timely introduction of complimentary foods,antenatal care,feeding programmes and iron/folate supplementation and immunisations must receive focused approach,says Dr Kamala Krishnaswamy,former director of National Institute Nutrition,and former president of Nutrition Society of India. She will present her talk at the 3rd Britannia Nutrition Foundation (BNF) symposium. The 3rd BNF symposium is planned on September 2 at New Delhi and will see international and national experts from multiple sectors engaged with the issue of malnutrition.

Infection Control

NABH (National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers) and BD (Becton,Dickinson and Company) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support hospitals in attaining quality-of-care standards for infection control. This collaboration is an effort to strengthen health systems in India and promote continuous quality improvement to ensure quality care for patients . Speaking on the occasion of the signing,Dr Giridhar J Gyani,Quality Council of India,secretary general and CEO,NABH,said,“Our objective is to develop a basic infection-control standard for all hospitals delivering healthcare in India.”

Apollo Liver Clinics launched

Apollo Liver Clinics,launched across the country,offer multi-disciplinary evaluation under one roof by several sub-specialists in liver medicine. “This is an effort to simplify,streamline and optimise the care of patients with liver diseases,” says Dr Anand Rammurthy,consultant,Surgical Gastroenterology and Liver Transplantation,Apollo Hospitals,Chennai. “We aim to become a ‘one-stop solution’ for patients with liver diseases and hepato-biliary pancreatic disorders so that all their requirements related to medical care are available under one roof thus saving patients’ time,cost and reducing duplication of tests and clinic encounters.” He also pointed out that over 50 million Indians are affected by liver diseases and the incidence appears to be on the rise.

Appeal

4 The Armed Forces Medical College has issued an appeal requesting people with AB positive blood group to urgently donate. A release issued here said that the mother of NK Walmik Patil – mother of a serving soldier suffering from portal hypertension and severe anaemia required blood transfusion. Interested donors can contact AFMC blood bank at phone number 26026038.

4 Thirteen-year-old Akansha Aurange is suffering from acute myeloid leukemia She requires bone marrow transplant that costs Rs 10 lakh. Dr Vijay Ramanan,clinical haematologist has issued an appeal urging for financial assistance. Interested donors can send a cheque/DD drawn in favour of Grant Medical Foundation or contact at 26123391.

4One-year-old Trupti Jadhav suffers from a large mal-aligned VSD and requires intra-cardiac repair. The cost of treatment is Rs 2.25 lakh,says Dr Ranjit Jagtap,cardiovascular surgeon. Interested persons can send cheque or DD in the name of Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital.(Compiled by Anuradha Mascarenhas)