Category: Health

LAHORE: For the first time, PhD and MPhil students will get scholarships for their research work in the subjects related to AIDS control programme in Punjab.“Some 44 applications for PhD and 76 for MPhil have already been received,” Primary and Secondary Health Department Additional Secretary Dr Adnan Zafar told reporters after presiding over a meeting here on Thursday.

Dr Zafar, also the project director of the Punjab AIDS Control Programme (PACP), said that 20 scholarships for PhD and 30 for MPhil students would be awarded.“Every PhD scholar will get Rs40,000 while MPhil student Rs20,000 scholarship,” he said.A committee consisting of experts would evaluate and sort out the eligible candidates for the scholarship.Headed by Professor of Pathology Dr Naeem Akhtar of the Rawalpindi Medical College, the committee includes Prof Tahir Yaqoob (Micro Biologist and Virologist at University of Veterinary Sciences, Lahore), Prof Abdul Rauf Shakoori (Professor of Biological Sciences at Punjab University), Prof Zarfashan Tahir (Institute of Public Health), Prof Sidra Saleem (University of Health Sciences) and Prof Anjum Nasim Sabri (Micro Biologist at Punjab University).Dr Zafar said the subjects selected for research work included micro biology, genetic, molecular biology, public health, medicines, virology, epidemiology, physiology and pathology.

263 poor patients treated within six days of launch of health

insurance program and more than 382,000 health insurance cards

have been distributed by Punjab Health Initiative Management

Company in Rahim Yar Khan

LAHORE:Since the launch of Prime Minister’s health insurance program by Punjab Health Initiative Management Company on 21 st October in district Rahim Yar Khan , 260 patients have seeked consultation from 17 empanelled hospitals. 196 patients have been admitted. 118 patients are currently admitted and 78patients have been discharged after hospitalization. The Punjab Health Initiative Management Company (PHIMC), mandated for execution of the Prime Minister’s National Health Insurance Program (PMNHIP) in the Punjab province, has distributed Pakistan Sehat cards (health insurance cards) among 75% of the identified beneficiary families from Rahim Yar Khan within a month’s time. The total number of beneficaries in Rahim Yar Khan is 515,000. So far 382,000 health cards have been distributed. The programme was launched by the Honorable Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif last Friday in District Rahim Yar Khan under Prime Minister’s National Health Insurance Programme (PMNHIP). The main objective of the PMNHIP program is to improve access of the poor population to good quality medical services, through a micro health insurance scheme. For the province of Punjab, the PHMIC will implement the programme. An amount of Rs. 1.5 billion has been allocated for the Health Insurance Initiative in the current budget for PHIMC.

The Punjab Health Initiative Management Company signed a contract with Ministry of National Health Services Regulation and Coordination (MoNHSR&C) in July for implementing the programme in four districts during the first phase of the program. The Department ofSpecialized Healthcare and Medical Education has mandated PHIMC to execute this program in Rahim Yar Khan, Khanewal, Narowal and Sargodha for 1.28 million beneficiary families. Both public and private healthcare facilities having ten plus (10+) beds and provisionally licensed by Punjab Healthcare Commission are entitled for empanelment in the scheme. After enrolment in the scheme, the beneficiary will be eligible to go to any empanelled hospital. The State Life Insurance Corporation of Pakistan has been selected for provision of services in all districts selected for PMNHIP. The payment of premium to the insurance company for the Punjab for the provincial districts is being financed by the Punjab government. A PHIMC spokesperson said that the Company was working at a very fast pace to implement the health insurance scheme in the selected districts in order to provide high quality medical facilities to the poor. The success in Rahim Yar Khan is remarkable while a follow-up survey also hintsthat a higher rate of satisfaction, 96%, among the beneficiaries. In the next phase from January 2017 to June 2017, three more districts will be added, benefitting a population of 1.6 million families and 11.2 million individuals belonging to poor socioeconomic status.The vision is to implement this program in 36 districts of the Punjab by the end of 2018. The Punjab Health Initiative Management Company (PHIMC) was established under Section 42 of the Companies Act, 1984 on 07.02.2015 after approval of the Honorable Chief Minister of Punjab. The main task of the PHIMC is to execute demand side financing schemes including pro-poor health insurance schemes in the Punjab.

 

NEW YORK CITY: The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Wednesday it had reached an agreement with six vaccine suppliers to provide a combined vaccine against five deadly childhood diseases for half the price it currently pays.

An estimated 5.7 million deaths a year could be averted under the deal to send 450 million doses to 80 countries between 2017-2020, the agency added.

“We will be able to procure pentavalent vaccine to protect children … for less than $1 a dose,” Shanelle Hall, director of UNICEF’s supply and procurement division, told a news briefing.

The vaccine, a cornerstone of routine immunisation programmes, will protect children from five major infections in one shot: diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B, and Haemophilus influenza type b known as Hib – a bacteria that causes meningitis, pneumonia and otitis.

The six suppliers were named as: Biology E, Jenssen, LG Life Sciences (068870.KS), Panacea Biotec Ltd (PNCA.NS), Serum Institute of India, and Shantha Biotechs.

The deal, which took 16 years to reach, will bring down the average price to 85 cents a dose, half the amount that UNICEF currently pays, generating savings for donors and governments.

It took time to expand a base of vaccine suppliers, which will reduce the risk of shortages, GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance said in a statement. GAVI and the Gates Foundation joined UNICEF in securing the multi-year suppliers’ contract.

GENEVA: Two companies making vaccines to help the world eradicate polio are failing to produce enough, so many countries should prepare to give lower doses to make stocks last, a group of experts has advised the World Health Organization.

With polio on the brink of eradication globally, the WHO wants to see a worldwide switch from the traditional “live” oral polio vaccine, which runs the risk of spreading the disease, to an inactivated vaccine that needs to be injected.

But WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE), which meets twice a year, said a severe shortage of inactivated vaccine means many countries should use a fractional dose, via an intra-dermal rather than intra-muscular injection, allowing each dose to go twice as far.

“There are only two manufacturers of the vaccine and they are having some problems with production of the vaccine, and getting enough raw material of the polio virus,” SAGE Chairman Jon Abramson told reporters on a conference call on Friday.

Polio is a contagious viral disease which invades the nervous system and can cause irreversible paralysis within hours.

“Each time we hear that there’s a further reduction in the amount that can be anticipated, we have to make further adjustments,” Abramson said. “My hope is this problem can be solved by 2018. But I can’t promise that, obviously. It’s not something we can control.”

The two manufacturers are French drugmaker Sanofi Pasteur and Asia’s largest vaccine maker, Serum Institute of India Ltd, owned by the billionaire Cyrus Poonawalla.

Contacted by Reuters, a spokesman for Sanofi Pasteur said the company was on track to meet its commitments as part of its 2016-2017 delivery plan and should be able to supply more doses in 2018. No comment was available on Friday evening from Serum Institute of India.

WHO polio spokeswoman Sona Bari told Reuters that production was about 40 percent below what had been requested, leaving about 50 countries without adequate supplies.

The economic savings of the polio program, between 1988 and whenever the disease is eradicated, were estimated at $50 billion, she said.

Unilever partners with ‘doctHERs’ to improve healthcare access in Pakistan

doctHERs are the winners of the third Unilever Sustainable Living Young Entrepreneur Awards held earlier this year

 

Lahore – Lifebuoy and doctHERs have agreed to work together for the improvement of healthcare across Pakistan. This was announced during a ceremony held to mark the success of doctHERs who won the third ‘HRH The Prince of Wales Young Sustainability Entrepreneur Prize’, awarded by Unilever and the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership earlier this year.

 

doctHers aims to mobilise Pakistan’s non-practising female doctors as a means of providing sustainable access to primary and secondary healthcare in rural communities from the comfort of their homes through video consultation. Since May 2015, doctHERs has directly impacted 15,000 lives through clinical services, 100,000 lives indirectly through community outreach and, now employs fifteen doctors, five nurses and five specialists.

 

Lifebuoy is committed to saving lives through hand-washing and hygiene education in Pakistan. The partnership between Lifebuoy and doctHERs will enable increased outreach of quality healthcare by educating new mothers about simple disease prevention measures such as regular hand washing with soap. This aims to reduce the spread of neo-natal infections and the risks of diarrhoea and pneumonia in infants. Lifebuoy will also facilitate the increased reach of doctHERs’ clinics into far flung areas of the country.

 

Shazia Syed, Chairperson & CEO, Unilever Pakistan Limited, highlighted, “I congratulate doctHERs on their success at the Young Entrepreneur Awards and am delighted by their passion and determination for improving healthcare, which has brought accolades for Pakistan. The partnership between Lifebuoy and doctHERs is a means of supporting their initiative to bring qualified female doctors back into the workforce. This ambition aims to help the underserved population that are otherwise deprived of quality healthcare.”

 

Dr Sara Saeed, cofounder, doctHERs, highlighted, “doctHERs envisions to reach out to over 5000 communities devoid of quality healthcare. This effort aims at reaching marginalised communities to and create a quality change in the present healthcare system of Pakistan. The Young Entrepreneurs Award and our partnership with Lifebuoy will bring us closer to our ultimate vision of touching 8 million lives across the country.”

 

The Young Entrepreneurs Awards are part of Unilever’s efforts to support the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and celebrate inspirational entrepreneurs aged 35 and under who have developed a product, service or application that tackles some of the world’s biggest sustainability challenges. In 2015, 927 entrepreneurs entered the awards from 99 countries. doctHERs were selected as winners following a demanding interview process and an intensive accelerator programme to prepare finalists for the final pitch.

 

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ABOUT UNILEVER PAKISTAN

Unilever Pakistan is a subsidiary of Unilever Plc, which operates in over 100 countries. Established in Pakistan in 1948, the Pakistan business is amongst the country’s largest consumer goods companies. Unilever is also one of Pakistan largest taxpayers. Unilever’s brands such as Lux, Lifebuoy, Lipton, Sunsilk, Surf Excel and Wall’s are known for their consistently high quality & value and are trusted & consumed daily by millions of people across Pakistan. Unilever’s brands strive to create a better future every day for consumers across Pakistan. Lifebuoy reaches out to thousands of children through its hand washing campaign, raising standards of hygiene; Lux promotes film, fashion and music through the iconic Lux Style Awards; Sunsilk partners PFDC in the fashion weeks and Blue Band supports nutrition. As one of Pakistan’s most preferred employers, Unilever directly employs over 2000 people across the country, and indirectly contributes to the employment of many thousands through its nationwide sales and distribution network. The Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP) provides the framework for Unilever’s ambition to double its business whilst reducing its environmental footprint and enhancing its positive social impact. In Pakistan, Unilever is engaged in a number of initiatives to enhance livelihoods, save water, energy, carbon emissions and to cut waste and promote recycling.

 

For more information about Unilever and its brands:  www.unilever.pk

For more information on the USLP: www.unilever.pk/sustainable-living/

 

ABOUT LIFEBUOY

Each year, 1.7 million children don’t reach their fifth birthday due to diarrhoea and pneumonia. Over 40% of under-five deaths occur within the first 28 days of a child’s life, the neonatal period, accounting for nearly half of the 18,000 children under age five dying every day. Diarrhoea alone results in 3,000 children every day dying before their fifth birthday. Many of these deaths are easily preventable through a simple practice of washing hands with soap – one of the most effective and low cost ways to prevent diseases. To ensure sustainable living, we need to address the negligence involved in hand-washing.

Lifebuoy is committed to saving lives through hand-washing and hygiene education. Lifebuoy helps and inspires billions of consumers to make, hand-washing with soap, a habit. Lifebuoy aims to makes a positive difference in the world by working towards the improvement of health and hygiene. A simple act of hand-washing can result in a 41% lower mortality rate among new-borns.

Lifebuoy aims to strengthen its mission by partnering with DoctHers and work towards improving health and hygiene standards in semi-urban/rural areas. With this partnership we aim to touch more lives and inculcate the habit of hand washing from the birth of a child. Till date, Lifebuoy has reached 357 million people in 24 countries with its hand-washing behaviour programmes, and by 2020 it strives to change the hand-washing behaviour of one billion people.

 

ABOUT doctHERs

doctHERs converts existing community spaces into walk-in clinics. Patients attending the clinics are assessed by nurses or community health workers recruited by doctHERs and connected to female doctors online using state-of-the-art telemedicine software ‘MDconsults”. The technology uses video alongside peripheral diagnostic instruments operated by nurses in the clinic and attached to the telemedicine system to diagnose patients remotely.

The make-up of the bacteria found in human faeces may influence levels of dangerous fat in our bodies, say researchers from King’s College London.

Their analysis of stool samples in a study of more than 3,600 twins found evidence that some of this bacteria is inherited.

What is contained in faeces bacteria could therefore partly explain why obesity passes down through families.

The study is published in Genome Biology.

The research team extracted information from study participants about the human faecal microbiome – the bacteria present in faeces samples – and compared these to six different measures of obesity, including body mass index (BMI) and different types of body fat.
he researchers found the strongest links with visceral fat, where participants with a high diversity of bacteria in their faeces had lower levels of visceral fat.

This type of body fat is bad news because it is stored in the stomach area around important organs such as the liver, pancreas and intestines and is linked with higher risks of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
More investigation

Dr Michelle Beaumont, lead study author from the department of twin research and genetic epidemiology at King’s College London, said although the study showed a clear link, it was not yet possible to explain why it existed.

One theory is that a lack of variety in faecal bacteria could lead to the domination of high levels of gut microbes which are good at turning carbohydrates into fat.

Dr Beaumont said: “As this was an observational study we cannot say precisely how communities of bacteria in the gut might influence the storage of fat in the body, or whether a different mechanism is involved in weight gain.”

And she indicated more research was needed to investigate how microbes in our guts and in our faeces can influence our health.

But there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that gut bacteria may play a role in obesity.

It is known that at least 50% of human faeces is made up of bacteria shed from the gut.

Dr Beaumont said that eating a broad diet including a variety of different types of food – much like that of the early hunter-gatherers – could increase the diversity of microbes in our faeces.

If the theory that microbes are passed on down the generations is correct, she said they may play an important role in how fat develops around the body and the health risk it presents.