'Need to develop indigenous solutions to health issues': Union Minister Jitendra Singh

Addressing 'Thyrocon-2023' in Jammu, the minister also said 'Premier institutes should work on establishing thyroid disease research and treatment centres'

Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday stressed the need for using diverse Indian data to develop indigenous solutions to the country's medical and health issues.

Addressing 'Thyrocon-2023', he also said in just a span of two years, India could produce two DNA vaccines and one nasal vaccine and provide them to 130 countries to fight the coronavirus

"We thank Prime Minister Modi who for the first time brought preventive health care into focus in the country which was not taken care of for the last 70 years," Singh said at the event organised by the Jammu Doctor's Foundation in association with the Department of Endocrinology, Government Super Speciality Hospital, Jammu.

Also Read | India records 6,050 new Covid-19 cases

Flagging two issues, the minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office said the first is the shift from clinical medicine teaching due to increasing diagnostic capabilities. "Now, the clinical details are inferred after obtaining the test reports," Singh said.

The second issue is of Indian research, Indian data and Indian solutions to Indian problems, he said, adding that "the need of the hour is using diverse Indian data to develop indigenous solutions to India's medical health issues".

The minister also stressed the role and responsibility of the youth to be the architects of 'amrit kaal' and said that "the energy and potential of the youth have to be channelised into nation building".

"The updates in Thyrocon will reflect the progress in the clinical management of patients with thyroid disorders which are a common health problem in Jammu and Kashmir, like in other parts of India," he said.

Quoting a study published in the Journal of Medical Science and Clinical Research in 2019, Singh said the prevalence of thyroid disorders in Jammu and Kashmir is around 12.3 per cent, with hypothyroidism being the most common type.

"Premier institutes should work on establishing state-of-the-art thyroid disease research and treatment centres. There is no dearth of resources and new India is an era of opportunities in health care," he said.

The minister said the Government Medical College, Jammu, has always taken the lead in the overall enhancement of the health status of the region.