IHIF inaugurates neuro rehab centre
New Delhi, Mar 20 : On the occasion of World Head Injury Awareness Day, the Indian Head Injury Foundation (IHIF) inaugurated an upgraded state-of-the-art neuro-rehabilitation facility at Delhi on Wednesday.
The occasion was graced by the presence of Union Minister for Culture Chandresh Kumari.
IHIF was founded by Maharaja Gaj Singh II of Jodhpur in February 2007 following an unfortunate incident in 2005 when his son Shivraj Singh suffered a serious head injury while playing polo.
Maharaja Gaj Singh II, Founder & Chairman, Indian Head Injury Foundation, said: "Projects and programs such as this, and the Cognitive Rehabilitation Conference in Kolkata next week - sponsored by IHIF - have received a critical impetus from the recently concluded Jodhpur One World Retreat; which has succeeded in raising vital awareness and resources for us."
Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Senior Consultant Neurosurgeon & Spine Surgeon, Apollo Hospitals and Executive Director, Indian Head Injury Foundation, said, "India has the highest incidence of head injuries in the world with limited infrastructure for emergency medical response & treatment and almost no facility in neuro rehabilitation.
"In fact one third of those who die from head injuries could have been saved if timely care was available to them."
In India 1 in 6 patients suffering a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) dies as compared to 1 in 200 in the US.
In 2005, road traffic injuries resulted in the death of an estimated 110 000 persons, 2.5 million hospitalizations, 8-9 million minor injuries and economic losses to the tune of 3% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in India.
If the present trend continues, India will witness the deaths of 150 000 persons and hospitalization of 3 million people annually by 2010, increasing further to 200 000 deaths and more than 3.5 million hospitalizations annually by 2015.
The precise number of deaths and injuries due to specific causes, or any scientific estimates of injury deaths in India are not available from any single source.
The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) is the principal nodal agency under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, and is responsible for the collection, compilation, analysis and dissemination of injury-related information (NCRB 2001a, 2001b).