(a) whether the attention of the Government has been drawn to the news-item captioned `Preventive health care - a low priority in India, say experts and the court` appearing in the `Indian Express` dated April 10, 2002;
(b) if so, the facts of the matter reported therein;
(c) the details and the Government`s reactions thereto; and
(d) the steps proposed to be taken in the direction of preventive health care?
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (SHRI A. RAJA)
(a) & (b) Government is aware of the news item regarding benefits of preventive health care which is not a neglected area in India. It has been reported that increased alcohol and tobacco consumption and stressful working environment are among the chief causes of lifestyle diseases which are preventable.
(c) & (d) There is an increased awareness that preventive health care through the medium of preventive health check-ups could be an important factor in diagnosing diseases in the early stages, thereby increasing the chances of recovery. This is specifically so in cancer and cardiac cases. Information, Education and Communication (IEC) is an integral part of all National Health Programmes including these for control of major non-communicable diseases. Through IEC activities efforts are made to generate awareness about benefits of preventive health care. The National Health Policy, 2002 lays emphasis on IEC in an effort to bring about a behavioral change to prevent life style diseases by adopting a healthy life style. The IEC strategy would aim at maximizing dissemination of information to those population groups which cannot be effectively approached by using only the mass media. The policy also envisages giving priority to school health programmes which aim at preventive health-education, regular health check-ups and promotion of health seeking behavior among children.