Vision 2031: A doctor for every 1,000 people

 

RACING AGAINST TIME

Vision 2031: A doctor for every 1,000 people

Could Be Short Of 9.54L Hands

Kounteya Sinha TNN

New Delhi: India has just one doctor for 1,700 people. In comparison, the doctorpopulation ratio globally is 1.5:1000. An internal note prepared by Medical Council of India’s “Undergraduate Education Working Group” said the target being put in place for India is 1 doctor for 1,000 population by the year 2031.
The note, available with The Times Of India, also looked at the situation in other countries. Somalia hasonedoctor for 10,000 population, Pakistan has one doctor for 1923 and Egypt has one doctor per 1484. China’s doctor-population ratio stands at 1:1063, Korea 1:951, Brazil 1:844, Singapore 1:714, Japan 1:606, Thailand 1:500, UK 1:469, US 1:350 and Germany 1:296.
The working group looked at the existing number of medical colleges, the intake, and the critical mass of doctors needed to achieve this target. India currently has 330 medical colleges with 35,000 students. With this intake, the shortfall of doctors by 2031 is estimated to be 9.54 lakh. To meet this target, the current intake and the doctors needed to be at least doubled.
The group also looked at the problem of teacher shortage in medical colleges. India at present needs 29,400teachers,butthereis a shortfall of 6,340 teachers. There will be an additional need for 35,740 teachers in India soon, the report said. Subjects like anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, pharmacology, pathology, surgery, medicine and forensic medicine each need 2,000 faculty members. But almost all these departments have a current shortfall of 500-1,500 teachers. Additionally, all these departments would each need 2,100-3,500 teachers in the near future.
Community medicine at present needs 2,400 teachers and has a shortfall of 500 teachers and would additionally need 2,900 teachers. Gynaecology currently requires 1,600 teachers and would need an additional 1,760 faculty members. The committee has recommended increasing the intake in existing medical colleges.

 

Mobile use in pregnancy tied to ill-behaved kids?

‘Cellphone Exposure In Womb Ups Behavioural Issues by 30%’

London: Moms-to-be, please note — regular use of cell phones during pregnancy could cause behavioural problems in your offspring, says a new study.
Researchers at the University of California and the University of Southern California have found that the risk is even higher if the offspring start using mobiles themselves by the time they are seven. In the study, involving 29,000 youngsters, the researchers found children who were exposed to mobile phones in the womb and then in early childhood were 50% more likely to have behavioural problems aged seven than youngsters exposed to neither.
Only being exposed to mobile phones while in womb was linked to a 30% increase, while youngsters who’re exposed to phones in childhood but not in the womb were 20% more likely to display abnormal behaviour, The Daily Telegraph reported.
The study is the second such research by the same team to find such an association. When the results from both studies were combined, more than 10% of children exposed to mobile phones in pregnancy had mothers who spoke on them at least four times a day, while half women had their phone turned on at all times. PTI

11 steps for fitness

1. Begin your day with a glass of hot water and fresh lemon. This not only flushes out the toxins from your body, but also rehydrates the body and gives you that much required kick.
2. When heading out for a night-out, it’s a good idea to have a meal before you go. This could be something like just a bowl of fruits, a vegetable salad or a nice thick soup. This lets you refrain from attacking
the food spread at the party.
3. Your weight loss plan should consist of a well-balanced diet and an exercise routine. In the initial days of your weight loss plan, aim for at least 30 minutes of cardio exercise. Gradually increase the duration to 60 minutes a day and see yourself shedding all that excess weight.
4. During your workout, if you feel tired and want to give up, count from one to 100 and see how you can keep going. This is a great way to boost your fitness level.
5. Add spices to your food. Spicy food speeds up the metabolism, which in turn burns more fat.
6. If you are the kind who enjoys the occasional drink, it may be difficult to monitor the calorie count. To overcome this handicap, set yourself a weekly weight loss target. This will help you check yourself from overindulging on a night out.
7. Burn that flab with green tea. Four or five cups a day burn about 50 calories.
8. Do not fret if you cannot hit the gym if your maid did not turn up. You can burn about 300 calories an hour by just sweeping and swabbing the house.
9. Never shop for groceries on an empty stomach. You could be unwittingly buying food items that are high on calories.
10. Ensure that every meal you prepare has at least 50 per cent vegetables. The rest can constitute lean meat, fish and other carbohydrates.
11. Eat whole fruits instead of drinking their juice.

LIQUID TREATMENT

Drink more water, it helps control BP

Washington: The health benefits of water are manifold. Now, add two more to the list — it raises alertness and keeps blood pressure within normal range, according to a new study.
   Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have carried out the study and found drinking water increases the activity of the nervous system, which raises alertness, blood pressure and energy expenditure.
   They first observed water’s curious ability to increase blood pressure about 10 years ago, in patients who had lost their baroreflexes — the system that keeps blood pressure within a normal range.
   “The observation came as a complete surprise. We had to unlearn the idea that water had no effect on blood pressure, which is what all medical students had been told until the last couple of years,” lead researcher David Robertson said.
   Although water does not significantly raise blood pressure in healthy young subjects with intact baroreflexes, the experts found that it does increase sympathetic nervous system activity and constrict blood vessels (which prevents pooling of blood in the extremities).
   In their latest study, the researchers found water introduced directly into the stomach or duodenum (the first part of the small intestine) raised blood pressure, which ruled out an oral or esophageal mechanism for the response.
   The researchers determined that water dilutes the plasma in the blood vessels leading away from the duodenum and that this short-lived reduction in salt concentration is responsible for water’s blood pressure-raising effect. PTI

 

The pursuit of happiness

The best way to find it is to not chase it

   Most of us are forever in search of happiness. You may find happiness in fine food, i might find it in books, the next person might find it in music. But we search for the Holy Grail of happiness all our lives. Now, it seems happiness can be taught in schools and colleges. An intriguing prospect as we look for a little emotional sunshine within ourselves in these hot, sultry days.
   At Harvard, i stumbled upon a course that addressed questions like: does money bring happiness, does happiness have a favourite sex, does happiness vary by culture? I wondered, could happiness be taught to students?
   The penny seems to have dropped for the western world – money cannot buy you happiness. In fact, studies now show that beyond a certain point, money undermines happiness. This conclusion, being based on scientific rigour – not faith – is an important setback to the conventional model of western life. After decades of going along with Mark van Doren’s line, “Our best chance for happiness is education”, education has been unable to deliver on the ultimate unsaid deliverable that every student wants – to be happy. Hence the rational western mind, in an effort to fill this gap, has now started teaching happiness. And not surprisingly, there is no dearth of takers. Harvard had to provide an auditorium for the record 700 students that enrolled for studying the happiness course. University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League, is now offering a Masters in happiness.
   Which brings us to the question – do students, at such a young age, need to be distracted by this esoteric idea of being taught happiness? Typically, a student, at the end of her education journey, wants a qualification that she hopes will make her more prosperous than before she started her journey. And top schools, in true customer service style, give her exactly that. Thus, when a student is primarily being taught how to be successful, happiness gyan can be distracting at best and conflicting at worst.
And this pattern remains till the first few years of one’s working life. I remember, as a freshly minted young country CEO of an MNC, when i was busy breaking the million-dollar barrier, i would have found the happiness message annoying. Hence, when our 10-year-old son picked up the Bhagavad Gita recently, i ended up paraphrasing Vivekananda to him, “No, make money first.”
   The second concern is the campus environs. Scientists now know (again, as if it were a new discovery), that by asking questions like “Who am i?” and “Why have i come on this planet?” an individual becomes happier. Great questions. Except that the fast-paced student life in a temple of academic excellence is not the best time to reflect on these questions. I remember scurrying from one class hall to another at Harvard, after reading nearly 100 pages the previous night, much of it in the laundry room while my family slept, learning about how to be successful. I was, and continue to remain, grateful for that learning process. However, i wonder whether classroom settings in such environs are the best place to reflect on these questions.
   The third concern is the one John Stuart Mill articulated, “Ask yourself whether you are happy and you cease to be so.” We cannot reach the elusive goal of happiness by the direct route of consciously searching for it. The secret lies in taking an elliptical path. A path that lies in being fully engaged and absorbed in one’s daily actions, including those related to becoming prosperous. A path towards which an individual can be subtly prodded by a master who herself has negotiated it. Happiness will then ensue instead of being pursued. And then Ved Vyasa, if he were to visit us again, would not have to undergo the despondency he went through when he witnessed the subversion of the Mahabharata’s message by the people of that time.

Simple fitness exercises

Health and Fitness can make all that difference in one’s life. Healthy living is all that one needs, and to achieve that I picked up the best of the articles from reliable sources and have presented here in an organized manner. You might not be able to spend your valuable time on complicated medications and diet controls, but, you can find articles to help you have a better living using simple and easy technics.

Simple fitness exercises can help to have a fitter and healthy life. Stretching exercises can help in many ways in maintaining a fitter body. Weight loss can be achieved by following simple effortless regular exercises. Medical breakthroughs can happen by regular meditation and exercising. Yoga and other workouts which can be performed easily are available in this website to keep you fit and healthy.

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I am not dreaming, am working on a dream….

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