SCRUB TYPHUS DEATHS RISE IN HIMACHAL , STATE GOVT SENDS REPORT TO HEALTH MINISTRY
In view of the rising number of cases and reported deaths due to of Scrub Typhus in Himachal Pradesh , Mr J P Nadda , Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare had sought a detailed report from the State Government . Having received the detailed report , the Union Health Minister has assured all support to the Himachal Pradesh Government in managing the endemic disease observed in this region .
Scrub Typhus is an acute illness caused by a bacterium Orintia Tsutsugamushi , which is transmitted by the bite of an infected mite larva present in the soil having scrub vegetation . Himachal is an endemic region as it has a large scrub vegetation .
GOVT REFUTES REPORTS OVER 10 % PRICE HIKE ON 100 NON-ESSENTIAL DRUGS
The Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers that controls the pricing of medicines , has denied the reports published in a section of media over the price hike on few non-essential drugs . These reports had stated increased prices of 100 drugs by 10 percent as due to their recent deletion from the essentials list .
Ministry has clarified that the ceiling prices of 464 formulation ( amounting to nearly 7000 different stock keeping units ) have been fixed by the government after the announcement of National List of Essential Medicines ( NLEM ), 2015 and Revised Schedule-I . " This has resulted in effective savings to the consumers of the country Rs 2288 Crore by way of reduced prices ," mentioned Ministry ' s circular issued in this regard .
Calling the news item as misleading , Ministry has said that it is not in tune with the factual position . The correct factual position as claimed by it in notification mentioned , " It is that consequent to notification of National Pharmaceuticals Pricing Policy-2012 ( NPPP-2012 ) on December 7 , 2012 and notification of Drugs ( Price Control ) Order , 2013 ( DPCO , 2013 ), all the medicines as specified in the NLEM-2011 were brought under price control . Ministry of Health and Family Welfare constituted a Core- Committee to revise the NLEM under the Chairmanship of Secretary , Department of Health Research and Dr Y K Gupta , Professor and Head , Department of Pharmacology , AIIMS as the Vice Chairman . This Committee evaluated the medicines on the objective criteria for inclusion and deletion ."
CLEANLINESS SHOULD BE A SOCIAL MOVEMENT , SAYS HEALTH MINISTER
The union health minister , Mr J P Nadda honored the winners of Kayakalp award for the setting up standards for public health facility on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi ' s birthday on October 2nd , 2016 .
This year ' s Kayakalp awards have been given to the Central Government Hospitals and District Hospitals from 26 big states . Under the Central Government Hospitals category , the first prize of was given to the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research ( PGIMER ), Chandigarh , the second prize was given to the All India Institutes of Medical Sciences ( AIIMS ), Delhi and the third prize was given to North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences ( NEIGRIHMS ), Shillong .
The information was revealed by Mr J P Nadda , Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare who offered “ Shramdaan ” on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti as part of “ Swachch Bharat Abhiyaan ” at Safdarjung Hospital on October 2 , 2016 . Speaking on the occasion , Mr Nadda said that “ Kayakalp ” initiative will encourage every public health facility in the country to work towards standards of excellence to help the facilities stay clean and hygienic .
WHO FOR STRONGER MEASURES AGAINST ZIKA AS THAILAND CONFIRMS TWO CASES
The World Health Organization has urged countries across the WHO South-East Asia Region to continue to take decisive action to prevent , detect and respond to Zika virus as Thailand confirmed two cases of Zika-related microcephaly .
“ Zika virus infection is a serious threat to the health and wellbeing of a pregnant woman and her unborn child . Countries across the Region must continue to strengthen measures aimed at preventing , detecting and responding to Zika virus transmission ,” Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh , Regional Director , WHO South-East Asia , said .
Thailand has confirmed two cases of Zika-related microcephaly , which , along with other neurological disorders , can occur when a neonate has been exposed to Zika virus in utero . The presence of Zika virus in the WHO South-East Asia Region has been documented in recent years , including from Thailand , Indonesia , Maldives and Bangladesh .
TOP EXPERTS DISCUSS PHARMACOVIGILANT ENVIRONMENT IN INDIA
The Indian Society for Clinical Research ( ISCR ) recently held its 3rd National Pharmacovigilance ( PV ) Symposium on the theme “ Evolving a Pharmacovigilant Environment in India - Collaborations , Opportunities and Challenges ”. The symposium brought together pharmacovigilance stakeholders across biopharma industry , Clinical Research Organizations ( CROs ), service providers , medical professionals , academia and regulators on a common platform to deliberate on the evolution of a pharmacovigilant environment in India by facilitating collaborative efforts to aid the emerging regulatory initiatives .
Dr G N Singh , DCGI , delivered the inaugural address during which he spoke about the Government of India ’ s initiatives to promote pharmacovigilance through the PvPI and invited stakeholders to share their knowledge with PvPI for furthering the cause of pharmacovigilance in India . health
While delivering the Guest of Honour ’ s address , Prof Dr N K Ganguly , Former Director General of ICMR , reiterated that more efforts have to go into building structured long-term collaborative ventures involving all stakeholders in order to benefit patients in India . Sessions covered during the symposium included the role of stakeholders in the evolving Indian pharmacovigilance environment , quality management in pharmacovigilance , pharmacovigilance in clinical trials and advances in pharmacovigilance .
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