“I am happy to participate in the valedictory session of the 11th Global Health Care Summit, Naidu

“I am happy to participate in the valedictory session of the 11th Global Health Care Summit-, organized by the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI),” Naidu said at valedictory event of the GHS in Kolkata.

“I would be happier if you people can come back to India and do something to help the society. Earlier the opportunity was very less here so people went to different parts of the globe for work. But now everything is available in India,” Naidu said during his valedictory address on the concluding day of the Summit here. Referring to the issue of brain drain, Naidu said, “I tell our children there are enough facilities in our colleges and IITs. “Still if you want to go, go learn earn and then return,” he quipped.
“Apart from conducting CMEs, seminars and workshops, AAPI must consider collaborating with various governments and other private organizations in establishing a state-of-the-art healthcare facility in each district of the country where affordable treatment is dispensed,” the Vice President of India told the delegates.

The Vice President praised AAPI and its noble “mission for India is to play an important role in making quality healthcare accessible and affordable to all people of India. It is indeed a laudable objective as both accessibility and affordability are the need of the hour, especially in a vast developing country like India with a huge population of middle class and lower middle class.”

He called upon AAPI to “help in promoting the use of telemedicine in remote rural areas which lack access to healthcare facilities. Telemedicine can be used effectively in radiology, cardiology, oncology, dermatology and a few other areas. It will help in reducing unnecessary visits to the hospitals for consultations with specialists and avoiding long distance travel,” Naidu said.

Naidu said that India needs an affordable health care revenue model to meet the challenges of modern day lifestyle. The Governor of West Bengal, Shri Keshri Nath Tripathi, the Minister for Urban Development, West Bengal, Firhad Hakim and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

“We treat a doctor as one who takes care of our lives. Medical profession is a noble profession as doctors are serving society,” the Vice President told the nearly 1,000 delegates who had come from around the world to attend the historical Summit.

The Vice President called on the medical fraternity to put in efforts to bring down the costs of medical devices to make healthcare affordable. He further said that youngsters are increasingly falling prey to ailments due to a variety of factors, including sedentary lifestyle, improper dietary habits and job-related stresses.

“We must all focus more on the service. The medical service in India is the need of the hour. India is still lagging behind in spite of a lot of advancement in medication. The Center is encouraging private sector in the medical healthcare sector. We must also go with the PPP model,” he added.

Claiming that India has the potential to become a medical tourist center in the future, the Vice President said accessibility and affordability of healthcare should be ensured as a large section of the country`s population belongs to the middle and lower-middle class.

The Vice president said that while India is progressing economically and incomes of people are improving, the common man is unable to meet the medical bill whenever there is a medical emergency in the family. With penetration of health insurance remaining quite low and majority of the Indian population preferring to seek medical treatment from private sector in health emergencies by spending from their own pockets, this problem gets compounded, he added.

Naidu urged the Center and state governments to invest more in the healthcare sector and educate people to get health insurance. Stating that providing proper medical service is the need of the hour, Naidu on Saturday said private sector investments and public-private Partnership (PPP) model should be encouraged more for the betterment of healthcare in the country.

“The central and the state government must together spend more in the health sector. Also people should be educated about getting health insurance. Many people in India are worried about the cost but health insurance is very much required,” Naidu said.

He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was committed in expanding the medical sector and the “PM wants to have medical college in every district and trained medical staff in all these facilities”. Observing India has made great medical advancements in recent times, the Vice-President said, “India is still lagging behind in spite of the progresses”.

Pointing out that modern lifestyle has made people shun physical exercise, Naidu advocated some sort of physical exercise and spiritual activities during the day which may help keep people fresh and stress-free. “The sedentary lifestyle of Indians have to change and doctors and scientists should educate people,” he said. Naidu said there were 69.1 million cases of diabetes in India, according to a 2015 census, and called for the need to create greater awareness among the youth about the dangers of sedentary lifestyle and eating junk food.

“The modern day lifestyle is creating serious health hazards. The doctors should indicate the people to go back to their cultural roots and follow the disciplined, systematic lifestyle. Diabetes is a major challenge faced in the country,” he said.

The Vice President said that one of the major challenges facing India is the growing incidence of diabetes in the general population and this trend needs to be arrested. He quoted a study saying diabetes was becoming common among lower socioeconomic groups living in urban regions of more developed States and this is a matter of concern.

According to International Diabetes Federation, 415 million people have diabetes in the world and there were 69. 1 million cases in India as per 2015 data. Pointing to another study, Naidu said, “India’s burden of diseases has shifted from communicable diseases to non-communicable diseases as incomes rose over the last 26 years. More deaths (61.8 per cent) were caused by non-communicable diseases such as cardio-vascular diseases and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in 2016 as against 53.6 per cent deaths due to communicable, maternal, neonatal and nutritional diseases in 1990.”

You can view and listen to the complete speech at the following link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7UtBkJ18lE