Khammam: The government will carry out an exercise to control non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the district. Before that a survey is being done of NCD patients.
The World Health Organisation says that NCDs, including heart diseases, cancer and diabetes, caused 61 per cent deaths in the country.
But the state as well as the country did not have proper data on NCDs for research and policy purposes.
In Khammam district, auxillary nursing midwives under the limits of 22 primary health centres and four urban health centres, numbering 424, were imparted training on the collection of data for NCDs.
These Auxiliary nurse midwife (ANMs) will approach people above 30 years and conduct tests. If they are found suffering from blood pressure, diabetes or cancer, they will be sent to the concerned PHCs for treatment.
But for those patients who have an acute case of NCD, they will be sent to the district headquarter hospitals for treatment.
In developed countries, NCDs begin at 55 years, but in India it begins at 45 years.
What worsens the problem are multiple chronic conditions and the fact that many remain undiagnosed due to lack of awareness and insufficient health care access.
NCDs puts 23 per cent at the risk of premature death. The Union health ministry had initiated several measures to tackle the increasing burden of NCDs.
Among those was a massive free door-to-door screening programme for early detection of cancer, heart diseases and diabetes. The programme aims to cover 200 districts in the country.
Cardiovascular diseases (coronary heart disease, stroke and hypertension) contribute to 45 per cent of all NCD deaths followed by chronic respiratory disease 22 per cent, cancer 12 per cent and diabetes three per cent.
Despite having a lower per cent of deaths from NCD, the share of premature deaths due to such diseases is quite significant.
