Health issues in India
President Ram Nath Kovind has praised the Centre’s flagship health insurance initiative Ayushman Bharat, touting the number of people who have availed the benefits of the scheme thus far. During an address before a joint parliamentary session, President Kovind said the scheme had made a significant contribution to reducing the catastrophic out-of-pocket spending on health […]
India is bolstering its reputation as the pharmacy of the world when it comes to the treatment of one condition in particular: AIDS and the virus which causes it, HIV. In 2017, there were approximately 36.9 million individuals living with HIV/AIDS, with 940,000 people succumbing to the complications of the disease. In that year, 1.8 […]
By 2023, India’s online pharmacies will become a US$2.7 billion market according to the latest growth forecasts – highlighting a major market opportunity in the country’s healthcare sector. “India is adapting to e-commerce rapidly, with mobile-first consumer behavior and improving digital payments infrastructure,” says Ankur Pahwa, who is a partner and national leader in e-commerce […]
Hypertension is a silent disease. It affects millions of Indians and responsible for 10.8 percent of deaths in the nation. This year, World Hypertension Day is being observed with the theme “Know Your Numbers”, highlighting the importance of screening for high blood pressure and ensuring it is kept under control. The occasion is observed annually […]
Health Issues India talks to Dr Mikashmi Kohli, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow of the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health at McGill International TB Centre, about a recent study she co-authored with Dr Madhukar Pai about the importance of essential diagnostics in the path towards universal healthcare. The study, “Essential Diagnositcs: A Key Element […]
By 2040, the number of people living with cancer who require chemotherapy will increase significantly worldwide. The burden will be most pronounced in low- or middle-income countries, including India, home to the third largest number of people living with cancer in the world. “The number of cancer cases necessitating first-line chemotherapy treatment will increase by […]
Shortages of the anti-rabies vaccine and other essential medicines continue to plague public hospitals across the country, with states turning to one another for assistance. So far, the onus for supply has been on Tamil Nadu. Andhra Pradesh, Delhi and Karnataka have also requested for supplies of essential medicines including the anti-rabies vaccine from the […]
2.9 million Indian kids missed out on the first dose of their measles vaccinations in the last eight years, according to the United Nations. A report by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reveals that more than twenty million children worldwide missed out on the all-important first dose of the measles vaccine in the past eight […]
Here is another example of the crumbling state of India’s healthcare infrastructure and the reason behind lack of access to essential, life-saving drugs. India has a shortage of an estimated 600,000 doctors and two million nurses, claims a study conducted by the Centre for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy (CDDEP), titled “Access Barriers to Antibiotics.” […]
2019 had barely begun before reports of an American woman who died of rabies after returning from India hit headlines. She was infected in Rishikesh, when a puppy bit her outside her hotel. The incident served to remind us that rabies continues to be a public health scourge in India, which accounts for more than […]
