By Tricitynews Reporter
Chandigarh
10th March:- The two-day 3rd Public Health Symposium at
Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGI), organized by
the School of Public Health, PGIMER, concluded today.
Several
panellists discussed about social determinants of health. Saurabh Jain,
Director, Swachh Bharat mission, said that sanitation is a major social
determinant of health and Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, initiated on 2nd October
2014, is a small step towards achieving it. He added that about 515 cities,
including Chandigarh, are now free of open defecation.
Ms.
Inayat, Research Coordinator, PGI, shared her experiences from a rural area of
Madhya Pradesh and emphasized the need to involve local communities.
Mirai
Chatterjee, Director of SEWA, Gujarat, said that behaviour change occurs when
people come together, and gave an example of ‘Vikasani Maha Mandal’ while
talking about the importance of water and sanitation in health.
In
her talk, Dr. Atreyi Ganguly, National Professional Officer, WHO India, said
that health promotion combines diversities and requires public participation
and health strategies need to be built as per the regional requirements.
Dr.
Papiya G Mazumdar, Associate Professor, Institute of Public Health, West
Bengal, acknowledged the various environmental factors that affect people’s
health, and wanted to intensify the focus on indicators of the urban health,
like air pollution and the resultant increase in various chronic diseases.
Stanzin Dawa, Regional Director, Rajiv Gandhi National
Institute of Youth Development, Government of India, conveyed that there is no
strong voice in mainstream Indian politics that talks about the social aspects
related to health, such as poverty and education.
Vivek Trivedi, Social Development Officer, SJSRY,
Chandigarh, presented his views on the importance of the convergence in health
and the ways by which it can be achieved.
Speaking
on the importance of health education in the health promotion, Dr. Anil Kumar
Goswami, Associate Professor, AIIMS, Delhi, said that modern lifestyle is
leading to various chronic diseases, but mobilizing people is very difficult.
Dr.
G.B. Singh, State Programme Officer, NPCDCS, Punjab, emphasized on the
importance of peer education in improving health of the community for chronic
and non- chronic diseases and noted that until and unless we are able to carry
the messages to the communities all other efforts that were taken will be
useless.
Dr.
Ashoo Grover, Scientist E, ICMR, New Delhi, talked about the various health
promotion models and the role of ICMR in health promotion.
Dr.
Pyare Lal Garg, Convener, Jan Swasthaya Abhyan, Punjab, said that people know
what is good for them and their health. But, they still not practice and adapt
those behaviours. Reasons behind this are important to know for efficient
promotion of health.
Suresh
Manjre, TISS, Mumbai, shared his work experiences on rural health and
developmental projects to highlight the various aspects of the health in rural
areas and challenges in promoting health among rural communities.
Speaking
on capacity building related to health promotion, Dr. Madhumita Dobe, Dean,
AIIHPH, Kolkata, said that getting quality staff to teach health promotion is
challenging”, and also stressed the importance of having a participatory,
rather than paternalistic, approach even in training on health promotion.
Dr.
Veera Gupta, Associate Professor, NUEPA, Delhi, spoke the need to focus on
psychological aspects of students, as mental health is indirectly related to
improving their physical health.
Dr.
Poonam Khattar, Professor, NIHFW, suggested, “Depending on the needs of the
learner, specialised health promotion courses can be offered as a short course
or using e-learning or distance learning tools,” and suggested that health
promotion courses may need accreditation, and health promotion be offered in
workplaces as well.
Tina
Rawal, PHFI, Delhi, shared an innovative health promotion among school children
in called ‘Project KIDS’ by actively engaging students to provide information
on chronic non-communicable diseases, health eating, etc. and to improve their
health advocacy skills, for example, against tobacco use, and facilitating
students parliament on health policies.
