Vijayawada: Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has stressed the importance of proactive health measures in order to prevent diseases.
During a review meeting he held on Wednesday with the Health department, Naidu said enhancing public awareness about health and making changes to dietary habits are crucial to reducing the medical treatment expenses.
Health minister Satya Kumar Yadav requested the CM to approve the recruitment of additional posts within the Institute of Preventive Medicine, so as to address the shortage of personnel.
In response, Naidu gave the green light for filling 150 posts, as a first step. He also urged the minister to resolve existing issues related to registrations for those studying medicine abroad.
The CM emphasized that every constituency should have a 100-bed hospital, particularly in tribal areas, and that government hospitals should be upgraded to match private facilities. Necessary outsourcing services should be considered to achieve this goal.
Naidu asked officials to implement a comprehensive action plan encompassing various aspects of lifestyle, including dietary choices and the consumption of organic products. He said health awareness was vital for preventing potentially burdensome healthcare costs in the future.
“If we continue current dietary habits, the risk of life-threatening illnesses, such as cancer, increases. We must promote the consumption of pesticide-free products and raise awareness among farmers and the public,” he said.
The CM also discussed the digital nerve centres (Tata Digital Nerve Centre services) being introduced in partnership with the Tata Trust and the Gates Foundation, which aim to keep the public informed about healthcare. A pilot project has already been launched in Kuppam, with plans to establish additional nerve centres across Chittoor district by January next year and statewide by the year-end.
Naidu called for the establishment of command control centres at the district and state levels to efficiently operate them, suggesting that they can provide improved medical services to the poor at a lower cost. He advocated regular health checks for all, every three to 12 months, to detect and address medical issues early.
“Diagnostic services should be made accessible to the underprivileged in city diagnostic centres, providing them with affordable options for procedures like CT and MRI scans,” he said.
In an effort to promote natural healing methods, the CM announced plans to revive a previous yoga council, the Yogadhyayana Parishad, and suggested the establishment of a society dedicated to disseminating information about yoga, natural therapies, homoeopathy, and traditional medicine.
He recognised the benefits of yoga in facilitating natural childbirth and emphasized a shift away from unnecessary cesarean deliveries. “Yoga training should become a part of everyone’s life,” he stated, calling for both offline and online yoga sessions.
Naidu also highlighted the necessity of early identification of nutritional deficiencies in children. He called for the effective implementation of the ‘Care and Grow Policy’ to ensure children receive the necessary nutritional support from an early age. He reaffirmed ongoing collaborations with the Gates Foundation and IIT Chennai to leverage technology in healthcare.