says Health Minister U.T. Khader

Mysore :

“Rabies, like the malaria and polio diseases, must be made a notified disease by the Central Government in order to adopt preventive measures against rabies, which is highly infectious and severe, affecting domestic animals, wildlife conservation, public health and livestock economies),” said Health and Family Welfare Minister U.T. Khader.

Speaking at APCRICON 2014, the 16th National Conference of Association of Prevention and Control of Rabies in India (APCRI) at Fortune JP Palace in city this morning, he said that the State Government will appeal to the Centre to make Rabies a notified disease and opined that other States too must follow suit.

“In case of the occurrence of such diseases, we blame the animals. But we humans are to be blamed because we need to keep our environment clean and healthy,” said the Minister and called for prevention rather than cure by spreading awareness in schools.

This conference, organised by the Department of Community Medicine, Mandya Institute of Medical Sciences, Mandya, brings together experts from various fields dedicated to rabies research from across the country and world, providing a forum to learn and share valuable experiences of world renowned authorities on rabies.

The inaugural of the conference was presided over by Dr. Abdul Rehman, President of APCRI. Dr. Pushpa Sarkar, Director, Mandya Institute of Medical Sciences was the guest of honour.

Dr. B.J. Mahendra, Organising Chairman, Dr. M. Vinay, Organising Secretary, Dr. M.K. Sudarshan, Founder President of APCRI and Dr. Amlan Goswami, Secretary General of APCRI were present.

Minister U.T. Khader released a souvenir while the APCRI journal was released by Dr. Pushpa Sarkar. Dr. Bankim Patnaik, a physician and former Vice President of APCRI, was felicitated on the occasion and presented with Lifetime Achievement award for his research work in pathology and rabies.

What is a notified disease?

A notifiable disease is any disease that is required by law to be reported to government authorities. The collation of information allows the authorities to monitor the disease, and provides early warning of possible outbreaks. In the case of livestock diseases, there may also be the legal requirement to destroy the infected livestock upon notification. Many governments have enacted regulations for reporting of both human and animal (generally livestock) diseases. This usually happens during pandemics.

If rabies is notifiable in a country, surveillance data can be collected. Better estimates of the number of cases can therefore be made, ensuring a more accurate evaluation of the rabies burden in an area. Rabies needs to be reported so that infected animals can be swiftly identified, isolated and removed reducing the risk of animals and humans across the country contracting the disease. Surveillance data will also provide public health professionals with critical information to make informed decisions about saving human lives. For instance, in a number of countries notification is used by health authorities to investigate possible exposures and organise post-exposure prophylaxis, quarantine and other disease containment measures.

source: http://www.starofmysore.om / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / July 05th, 2014