Flush the Diarrhoea !!! Modi Governments mission to root out diarrhea en-route Dr. Harsh Vardhan Despite the availability of a simple treatment solution, the world is still facing terror in the form Diarrhoea with thousands of deaths every year. If we take a look at the real time data for this medical problems among the growing, then shocking statistics appear. •Diarrhoea accounts for more than 9% of all the deaths among children under 5 years of age all across the globe. •More than 1,600 young children die each day because of it, accounting for more than 580,000 deaths in a year (2012). India does not lag far behind in the same. Here is a little overview of the statistics for Diarrhoea in India - •out of every 1000 children born in the country, only 61 are able to make it to the age of 5 •the country has the second highest rate of death caused due to this problem, only behind Afghanistan •13% of the child deaths in India in the year 2010 were the resultant of Diarrhoea Even after rapid economic growth and immense inflow of trade and investment every year, the reduction in mortality rate of children in India is still among the highest ones. According to data provided from the United Nations, India has promised to increase its spending on healthcare from 1.4% of the total GDP to 2.5% by 2017. # Causal Factors : Diarrhoea is ( mostly ) an infectious diseases which is commonly associated with poor sanitary conditions. Here are three of the most prominent reasons that cause this health problem - 1.Eating contaminated food 2.Drinking unclean water 3.Transmission through an infected person What makes the condition so severe in our country is the fact that majority of the population lives below poverty line, and do not have access to hygienic sanitation. Apart from the factors mentioned above there are certain other risk factors involved as well that might cause diarrhea. These are - •Inflammation in the colon lining •diverticulitis (a condition where a pouch forms in the wall of the colon and gets infected) •irritable bowel syndrome •allergy to milk (lactose intolerance) •side-effect to surgeries such as gallbladder removal •Certain medications # Mission Eradicate Diarrhoea by the NDA Government : Considering the severity of the condition, the newly appointed Health Minister of the Narendra Modi led NDA Government, Dr. Harsh Vardhan has started a voyage to fight against this medical problem and root it out from the country. He has proven track record for doing so with Polio. With the nationwide launch of Intensified Diarrhoea Control Fortnight (IDCF), the health minister assured that health control measures will be mobilised to boost diarrhoea-control at both state as well as central levels. Dr. Harsh Vardhan said, The measures are a set of activities which include enhancing advocacy, stepping up awareness generation, establishing more ORS-zinc corners, enthusing ASHA volunteers to reach oral rehydration solution (ORS) packets to families with children as well as detecting kids in need of treatment. He also put emphasis on the severity of the conditions that led to the eruption of this children-killer stating that more than 200,000 children are dying daily because of diarrhoea, the number one factor of child mortality in the world. Dr. Harsh Vardhan connected the severity of the problem with poor-education as well. While flagging the launch, the Health Minister made the remarks, a child falling ill in any family affects the parents most and those who lose their children to such fateful diseases undergo through the worse. We will ensure that ORS should be available in every house so the condition of the child does not deteriorate. Here is another thing. When parents know that their kid may die because of certain illness, they tend to have more children, to create “safety net”. This adds to the population problem. It may sound as paradox but keeping the children healthy reduces the population. He also said, if we educate the poor mother around us and tell her that ORS + ZInc can save her baby, she will go to all extends to procure it and do everything to save her child. Touching the hearts of millions of Modi-Government fans in the country, Dr. Harsh Vardhan mentioned the efforts at global level which being taken care by UNICEF, WHO, to eradicate this dreaded disease. just like Polio, this disease can also be won over, with sincere efforts from the government. The efforts from UNICEF, WHO has managed to save more than 50 million lives over the past three decades, and India would be joining hands with this global foundation to eradicate this preventable cause of death from the society. According to Dr. Harsh Vardhan, community services would have to participate at a much greater level to ensure awareness about this condition. With the help of some simple steps, this serious condition can be handled. Efforts at global level have been running for years to root out this evil from the society. Although, significant progress has been made during the past few decades but the countries all over the world have failed to meet the targets. In fact, there has been reduction in the number of deaths children below 5-year age group to almost 50% during the time period 1990-2011. However, the goal of United Nations Millenium Development Program to bring down the mortality rate of children to 29/ 10,000 births by the year 2015 is still far from achievable. The currents stats for the same stand at 51 deaths per 10,000 births (until the year 2011). The Health Minister also laid emphasis on the importance of sanitation in maintaining a check on diarrhoea, stating that people, especially in the rural areas must be made aware of the preventive care steps that can be employed to stay safe against diarrhoea. He further added,Of Course, for all this economic improvements are also needed. Proper living conditions have to be made available to poor. A large percentage of our population does not even have access to clean water. However, with little efforts and increased awareness the condition can be brought under control. The initiative has come as a pleasant surprise for the people living in poor habitat in the country, and is a reflection that Good days are about to come with Modi-led Indian Government अच्छे दिन आ रहे है (Acche din aa rahe hai).
Posted on: Thu, 31 Jul 2014 14:08:32 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015