Nadda releases National Health Profile 2018

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi :  Union Health and Family Welfare Minister J P Nadda released the National Health Profile (NHP)-2018 prepared by the Central Bureau of Health Intelligence (CBHI) here on June 19, 2018. The E-book (digital version) of the annual document was also released. The National Health Profile covers demographic, socio-economic, health status and health finance indicators, along with comprehensive information on health infrastructure and human resources in health.

Nadda also launched the National Health Resource Repository (NHRR) – Country’s first ever national healthcare facility registry of authentic, standardized and updated geo-spatial data of all public and private healthcare establishments at the function.

Ashwini Kumar Choubey and Anupriya Patel, Ministers of State for Health and Family Welfare, Smt Preeti Sudan, Secretary (Health), and Santanu Chowdhury, Director (NRSC, ISRO), also graced the occasion.

Nadda stated that the Health Profile is a very important tool as it has helped in designing various programmes. He cited the examples of initiatives like Free Drugs and Diagnostics and Mission Parivar Vikas that have benefitted from the Health Profiles. He said that  India has made substantial progress on several indicators in the recent years and stated that its national health indicators like Infant Mortality Rate (IMR), Maternal Maternity Rate (MMR) and Total Fertility Rate (TFR) are declining faster  than the world pace. The Union Health Minister added that India has shown impressive gains with 22% reduction in Maternal Mortality since 2013. “We must also appreciate that Uttar Pradesh with 30% decline has topped the chart in the reduction of Maternal Deaths,” he said.

Nadda further said that Ayushman Bharat will provide comprehensive healthcare to the people as 1,50,000 sub-centres will be converted into Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs). “The HWC would provide preventive, promotive, and curative care for non-communicable diseases, dental, mental, geriatric care, palliative care, etc,”he said. He further stated that the Government has initiated universal screening of common NCDs such as diabetes, hypertension and common cancers along with Tuberculosis and Leprosy, which will eventually help in reducing the disease burden of the country.

The Union Health Minister stated that the data is an important source of navigation. It helps in understanding the goals, our strengths and weaknesses and it is also an important means to strategize. Good compiled data enables the policymakers to make evidence-based policies and aids in effective implementation of various schemes, he added.

Addressing the participants, Choubey stated that data is not only important for understanding the health indicators of the country, but it also provides an opportunity to monitor the situation. He further said that the National Health Profile – 2018 indicates that significant progress has been made in the country for various health outcomes, which is an encouraging sign.