Category: Health

Health

Govt bans sale, production of ‘unsafe’ Khyber milk products

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In the wake of orders of a court in central Kashmir’s Budgam district, the J&K government Wednesday ordered recall of milk and all milk products manufactured by Khyber Agro Farms and directed that these products should not be supplied till further directions. The government has issued orders for implementing the judgment of Judicial Magistrate Budgam and ordered Controller Drug and Food Control Organisation to “remove milk and milk products manufactured by Khyber Agro Farms Private Limited ‘immediately’.” The Health and Medical Education Department, in its order No HD/Legal/Drug/MR-56/2016 dated 06-04-2016…

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Private practice by govt docs hits patient care badly

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DAK terns it root cause of ‘health care mess’ Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) today said that the private practice by government doctors in Jammu and Kashmir particularly in teaching hospitals has badly hit patient care. Calling for complete ban on private practice, President DAK Dr Nisar ul Hassan in a statement said that it is the root cause of healthcare mess and patients suffer the consequences. “It is ironical that full-time government doctors are allowed to run private clinics depriving poor and underprivileged of essential health care,” Dr Hassan said…

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SKIMS officials fake burglary to escape probe

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Sale of expired surgical equipment, consumables The officials of Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) Soura have gone to a new low to cover up their frauds and medical negligence by allegedly faking a burglary in the institute’s Drug Store, a day after exposing the fraud. On April 3, this newspaper has carried news about sale of expired surgical equipment and consumables by the SKIMS at its Drug Counters. As per official sources, the surgical equipment and consumables like Endoscopy Band, Platelet Theresis Set, and Prolene Mesh were being sold…

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Khyber convicted of selling sub-standard dairy products

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Company to pay Rs 9 lakh fine, sentenced to six months in jail A court in Budgam today convicted milk processing company Khyber Agro Farms Private Limited of selling misbranded, sub-standard and unsafe milk products in Kashmir. While convicting the company under Section 51, 52 and 59 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the Court of Munsif, Budgam, Imtiyaz Ahmad imposed a penalty of Rs 9 lakh on the Khyber Agro Farms. The court also sentenced six month imprisonment to the accused company through nominated person. The court…

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Growing drug abuse among youth matter of concern: HC

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Says country’s proximity to opium-growing regions behind drug trafficking The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has said that due to India’s close proximity to the major opium-growing regions, the country is facing the menace of drug trafficking and drug abuse among the youth is increasing, which is a matter of concern. These observations were made today by the J&K High Court while dismissing a habeas corpus petition by a “drugs trafficker”, Jahangir Ahmad Khan, a resident of Wanigam in north Kashmir’s Baramulla. Khan, who was first booked by the authorities…

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DAK expresses concern over rampant hysterectomies in Valley

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Due to lack of clinical audit, thousands of innocent women in Kashmir are being subjected to “unscrupulous” hysterectomies — surgical removal of uterus, claimed Doctors Association of Kashmir. “Women in Kashmir are prone to osteoporosis which is facilitated by unnecessary and scandalous hysterectomies,” said DAK president Dr Nisar-ul-Hassan. Dr Hassan attributed the increasing cases of osteoporosis among women to removal of uteruses after pregnancy complications. As per the Union Health Ministry data, more than 12,000 hysterectomy surgeries were conducted in Jammu and Kashmir in 2014 and 2015, he said. The…

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Hepatitis ‘on rise’, but JK continues with ‘outdated’ testing technique

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Despite evidence suggesting that Hepatitis-C infection is on rise in many parts of Jammu and Kashmir, the Health authorities in the State continue to test blood samples through “less-effective but cheaper technologies”, thus risking lives of hundreds of patients while allowing spread of the disease. Official data points to an increasing incidence of Hepatitis B and C infections— commonly spread through blood—in the Valley. The Kashmir Centre of Integrated Disease Surveillance Program—in its Activity Report for 2015—states that 262 cases of Hepatitis (both B and C) were reported from Kashmir…

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Doctors will be trained in latest diagnostic techniques : Health dept

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With a rise in the heart disease cases in Kashmir valley, the health department has decided to train doctors in both rural and urban areas in latest diagnostic techniques and treatment procedures to save precious lives. A health official said that 5-10 per cent of patients with chest symptoms visit Out Patient Departments (OPDs) every year and there is a bright chance to properly diagnose and treat them at the initial stage. The timely intervention by doctors has already saved dozens of patients at health centres in Ganderbal, Bijbehara and…

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Under fire, DFCO asks food outlet owners to ‘follow standards’

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Under fire for its mass failure to address food adulteration and sale of substandard drugs, the Drugs and Food Control Organisation (DFCO) on Friday impressed upon all the food business operators dealing in processed, partially-processed or unprocessed food substances—intended for human consumption—to strictly adhere to the provisions laid down under Food Product Standards & Food Additives (FSSA) Rules & Regulations. A DFCO spokesperson said it has come to the notice of the State Government that some vendors dealing in preparations/marketing of Food Articles particularly including traditional “Wazwan” items are using…

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A SKIMS ward, ‘dedicated’ for cancer patients, reserved for VIPs

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With incidence of cancer on rise in Kashmir, there is nothing being done at the governmental-level to address the lack of facilities for treatment of cancer patients in the Valley. At the SK Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) at Soura, a 20-bedded ward sanctioned for Surgical Oncology by a former Chief Minister has proved to be a damp squib. The Ward 2-P was allocated for cancer surgeries in 2012 when the Department of Surgical Oncology was established. While the Ward housed some faculty rooms for two years, it was not…

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