Gender equity, community participation key to fight diabetes, high BP in India: Experts
New Delhi, Dec 12
Gender equity and community participation are essential to combat the rising cases of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes, high BP in India, said experts here on Friday.
NCDs, including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, and obesity, are responsible for 65 per cent of deaths in India.
“Community participation has helped improve infrastructure, service delivery, and health awareness, even in remote regions where challenges are many. We have seen that empowering local leaders and women to take part in planning and monitoring creates ownership and lasting change,†said Dr. Thomas Keppen, Nagaland - Deputy Director, Department of Health and Family Welfare, at an event held in the national capital.
Keppen suggested boosting community-based approaches and documenting progress regularly to make systems more transparent and sustainable.
The annual Evidence2Policy dialogue, organised by The George Institute for Global Health, India, sparked conversations around bridging the "know-do gap" in public health policy implementation.
“Equity in NCD care is not only about women, but it is also about reaching men and every section of the community. When healthcare is taken closer to people, women come forward to seek care, but we must also find ways to engage men,†said Dr. Sumit Malhotra, Professor, Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS, New Delhi.
Malhotra stressed the need to strengthen community health workers, with regular medicine supplies, and improve linkages between different levels of care to make the health system more responsive and fairer.
The health officials also underscored the importance of data-driven decision-making, equity-oriented health policies, and strengthening health systems to ensure universal access without financial hardship.
Meanwhile, the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NP-NCD), a population-based initiative for prevention, control, and screening for common NCDs, has been rolled out in the country under the National Health Mission (NHM) and also as a part of CPHC.
“Population-based screening helps in better management of diseases by the way of early stage of detection, follow-up, and treatment adherence,†the Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Prataprao Jadhav, shared in the Parliament.
“A total of 39.79 crore screenings for hypertension, 39.60 crore for diabetes, 33.57 crore for oral cancer, 15.72 crore for breast cancer have been carried out at all health facilities till November 30,†he added, citing data from the NP-NCD portal.
— IANS
Reader Comments
The numbers are staggering - 65% of deaths from NCDs. We need more awareness at the grassroots. In my village in UP, men often ignore checkups until it's too late. Engaging men is a challenge but must be done.
As someone working in public health, I appreciate the focus on the "know-do gap". We have great policies on paper, but implementation at the last mile is where we fail. Strengthening ASHA workers with regular supplies is critical.
Nearly 40 crore screenings for diabetes and hypertension is a massive achievement by the NP-NCD program. Hope they keep the momentum and ensure follow-up treatment is accessible and affordable for all.
Gender equity in healthcare is not just about women's access. It's about designing programs that consider who in the family makes health decisions, who has mobility, and who bears the caregiving burden. A holistic approach is needed.
While community participation is ideal, we must also address the urban-rural divide in healthcare infrastructure. A screening in a Delhi hospital is very different from one in a remote PHC in Nagaland. Equity means equal quality of care.
The data from the portal is promising, but data-driven decisions only
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.