AMC allocates Rs 30L to councillors for ward area development
The Asansol Municipal Corporation (AMC), the second largest civic body in the state after Kolkata Municipal Corporation
Aiming to create awareness among the citizens, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation is to launch a pilot project for screening and detection of rare diseases among children.
According to the deputy mayor of the KMC, Atin Ghosh, the civic body would impart training to its medical officers and ASHA workers on rare diseases. To reach out to the citizens, particularly women at ward level, around 700 ASHA workers would be roped in and given a set of questionnaires. Based on the questionnaire, the ASHA workers visiting the urban primary health centres during pregnancy or even for availing immunization facility for children would collect the information that would be submitted and screened for finding out the rare diseases. The results would further be utilized for the formation of public healthcare systems and solutions of the rare diseases.
The initiative has been taken by the KMC, with the concerted efforts of a group of individuals associated with ‘Organization For Rare Diseases India,’ working on the subject. As informed by Mr Ghosh who is also the MMiC for health department of the KMC, the organization had held two different camps in the city. At one camp, 11 children were found to have rare diseases. In the other camp in which 300 people were screened, 35 children were found to have the diseases.
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According to Dr Dipanjana Dutta, who is also a part of the initiative, there is a general lack of awareness among the citizens. According to the genetic counsellor, women should be screened right from pregnancy by monitoring the weight of the foetus to detect the possibilities of the disease.
“We have decided to launch the screening programme in a pilot project in 10 wards covering the 16 boroughs of KMC,” informed the deputy mayor. “However, the exact wards are yet to be decided by the KMC,” he added.
A walk by the children affected by the rare disease is to be organised tomorrow near Maidan Tent.
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