November 13, 2024

Health


General Studies Paper-2 Context: India is now recognised globally for its world-class medical services, witnessing  profound transformations in the health-care sector and stands as a global health-care hub which signifies our medical prowess but also our economic resilience. About India’s Health Sector: Recent Trends and Initiatives Government Health Expenditure and Primary Healthcare: Economic Survey 2023-2024 sheds light on several key aspects of India’s health sector. Rise in Government Health Expenditure: The latest National Health Accounts (NHA) estimates reveal an increase in the share of Government Health Expenditure in the total GDP as well as the share of GHE in Total....Read More

One Health Initiative

General Studies Paper -2 Context: India is ahead of several countries in drafting a legal framework to support the implementation of the ‘One Health’ initiative. What is One Health? It is an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals and ecosystems. It recognizes that the health of humans, domestic and wild animals, plants, and the wider environment (including ecosystems) are closely linked and interdependent. Need of One Health in India Zoonotic Diseases: India faces significant challenges from zoonotic diseases such as rabies, leptospirosis, and avian influenza. These diseases can spread between animals....Read More

General Studies Paper -2  Context: Recently, a research paper from Lancet has released the forecast of fertility rate in India. Major Findings Drop in Fertility Rate: India’s fertility rate has dropped from nearly2 in 1950 to just under 2 in 2021. It is projected to dip further to1.29 in 2050 and 1.04 in 2100. Depleting Working Population:India’s total fertility rate (TFR) — the average number of children born per woman — is dipping irreversibly to 1.29, far lower than the replacement rate of 2.1. This means a rapidly depleting working age population. Increase in Senior Citizens:By 2050, one in five Indians will be....Read More

General Studies Paper -2 Context: The Kerala Drug Control Department launched Operation AMRITH to prevent the overuse of antibiotics in the state. Background In 2011, the Indian government introduced the H1 rule to prohibit the over-the-counter (OTC) sales of antibiotics without a prescription, responding to the growing concern over antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In 2013, the rule to limit the OTC restriction was limited to second- and third-line antibiotics, allowing the sale of first-line antibiotics without a prescription. Step was taken to ensure that life-saving antibiotics remained accessible to the public, especially in remote areas Operation AMRITH enforces the original H1 rule, mandating a....Read More

General Studies Paper-2 Context: The World Health Organization (WHO) recently launched the Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH), a platform for sharing knowledge and digital products among countries. Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH) The GIDH will be a WHO Managed Network(“Network of Networks”) that will promote equitable access to digital health by addressing challenges such as duplication of efforts and “products-focused” digital health transformation. Aim: ALIGN efforts to support the Global Strategy on Digital Health 2020–2025; SUPPORT quality assured technical assistance to develop and strengthen standards-based and interoperable systems aligned to global best practices, norms and standards; FACILITATE the deliberate use of quality assured digital....Read More

General Studies Paper 2 Context A new report from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said measles cases in 2022 have increased by 18%, compared to 2021. Findings on measles in India India’s Union Health Ministry has refuted a part of the report which said that globally 22 million children did not get their first measles shot in 2022 and that half of them live in 10 countries including India, where an estimated 1.1 million infants did not get the first dose of the vaccine. According to the WHO, measles vaccination....Read More

General Studies Paper 2 Context: It may not be possible to make India ‘diabetes free’, but a ‘diabetes complications free India’ is within reach. Introduction The concept of a reversal of diabetes has become very popular recently. Several commercial organisations have jumped on the bandwagon of a ‘reversal of diabetes’ and are making tall claims. Therefore, it is important to consider the pros and cons of a reversal of diabetes. Diabetes Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. Insulin is....Read More

General Studies Paper 2 Context COVID-19 pandemic extracted a heavy mortality toll across the world during 2020 and 2021, and this has been a huge global public health concern. But we were not able to accurately assess COVID-related death toll. Gaps in registration data Given the challenges in direct causal attribution of deaths to COVID-19 infection, the international public health community emphasised the need to measure pandemic impact in terms of excess mortality, derived by comparing observed mortality during the pandemic with expected mortality based on pre pandemic trends. Ideally, excess mortality estimation requires robust population based mortality data from....Read More

General Studies Paper 2 Context Cord blood banking is not a ‘biological insurance’ and its role in regenerative medicine is hypothetical. It is recommended only if there is a family member (siblings or biological parents only), currently suffering from diseases approved to be benefitted by allogenic stem cell transplantation. Cord Blood The blood from the newborn that is still present in the placenta and umbilical cord after birth is known as cord blood. Umbilical cord blood is a rich source of stem cells; i.e., Hematopoietic stem cells, which are unique cells and can be employed to cure certain disorders. In....Read More

General Studies Paper 2 Introduction Exactly three decades ago, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Revitalization Act of 1993 mandated the inclusion of “women and minorities” in clinical trials in a bid to reduce health disparities. Yet, to date, the male model of medicine is thriving, and so is the tendency of treating women as smaller men despite a growing body of research insisting on physiological differences (beyond the reproductive organs) between the sexes. The genetic and epigenetic differences between men and women are also extensively documented. Generic drugs, trials, mental health In India, the “pharmacy of the world”,....Read More

© 2024 Civilstap Himachal Design & Development