Latest news with #MillenniumDevelopmentGoals
Time of India
30-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Punjab Health Minister issues strict directives for uninterrupted oxygen supply in all critical care units
Chandigarh: Punjab's Health Minister Balbir Singh on Tuesday issued strict directives to ensure uninterrupted oxygen supply and power backup in all critical care units, including ICUs, Operation Theatres (OTs) and emergency wards across all government health facilities in the state. The directives came in the wake of the death of three patients at the civil hospital in Jalandhar on Sunday, with the kin of the deceased blaming a technical fault in the oxygen supply at the trauma centre for the deaths. Presiding over a high-level meeting with civil surgeons from all districts, Balbir Singh emphasised the need for 24x7 oxygen availability, functional UPS systems and fully operational generator sets to prevent any disruption in life-saving medical services. Balbir Singh said that approximately one thousand new doctors will be joining in the coming months, as the recruitment process is near completion, which will considerably improve the quality of health services. The Health Minister also issued stringent directives regarding medicine supply, instructing civil surgeons to maintain at least one month's buffer stock of all 368 types of essential medicines and warned against any shortage of essential medicines. "No patient should be prescribed any medicines from outside the hospital," he said, while reiterating that the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led government's commitment to ensure free and accessible healthcare. He said that Senior Medical Officers (SMOs) have been empowered to purchase any non-essential medicine as per their requirement, warning that strict disciplinary action would be taken against any non-complying medical officer. To bolster the medicine dispensing system and overall patient experience, civil surgeons and SMOs were also directed to visit OPDs daily and collect patient feedback. To further enhance patient satisfaction, Balbir Singh directed civil surgeons to ensure that Outpatient Department (OPD) services are delivered within an hour of registration. In another move to enhance critical care capabilities, the minister announced that every doctor and paramedic, including staff nurses, will undergo training in critical care and advanced life support. He also tasked each civil surgeon to submit their district's health status in comparison to the Millennium Development Goals, enabling the department to set targets for better progress.>
The Print
29-07-2025
- Health
- The Print
Punjab Health Minister issues strict directives for uninterrupted oxygen supply in all critical care units
Presiding over a high-level meeting with civil surgeons from all districts, Balbir Singh emphasised the need for 24×7 oxygen availability, functional UPS systems and fully operational generator sets to prevent any disruption in life-saving medical services. The directives came in the wake of the death of three patients at the civil hospital in Jalandhar on Sunday, with the kin of the deceased blaming a technical fault in the oxygen supply at the trauma centre for the deaths. Chandigarh, Jul 29 (PTI) Punjab's Health Minister Balbir Singh on Tuesday issued strict directives to ensure uninterrupted oxygen supply and power backup in all critical care units, including ICUs, Operation Theatres (OTs) and emergency wards across all government health facilities in the state. Balbir Singh said that approximately one thousand new doctors will be joining in the coming months, as the recruitment process is near completion, which will considerably improve the quality of health services. The Health Minister also issued stringent directives regarding medicine supply, instructing civil surgeons to maintain at least one month's buffer stock of all 368 types of essential medicines and warned against any shortage of essential medicines. 'No patient should be prescribed any medicines from outside the hospital,' he said, while reiterating that the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led government's commitment to ensure free and accessible healthcare. He said that Senior Medical Officers (SMOs) have been empowered to purchase any non-essential medicine as per their requirement, warning that strict disciplinary action would be taken against any non-complying medical officer. To bolster the medicine dispensing system and overall patient experience, civil surgeons and SMOs were also directed to visit OPDs daily and collect patient feedback. To further enhance patient satisfaction, Balbir Singh directed civil surgeons to ensure that Outpatient Department (OPD) services are delivered within an hour of registration. In another move to enhance critical care capabilities, the minister announced that every doctor and paramedic, including staff nurses, will undergo training in critical care and advanced life support. He also tasked each civil surgeon to submit their district's health status in comparison to the Millennium Development Goals, enabling the department to set targets for better progress. PTI SUN RT RT This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Time of India
29-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
3 days after Jalandhar tragedy, Punjab health minister asks all civil surgeons to ensure oxygen supply
Chandigarh: Three days after three people died due to a snag in the oxygen plant of Jalandhar civil hospital, Punjab health minister Dr Balbir Singh on Tuesday issued strict directives to ensure uninterrupted oxygen supply and power backup in all critical care units, including ICUs, operation theatres (OTs), and emergency wards across all govt health facilities in the state. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Presiding over a high-level meeting with civil surgeons from all districts, Dr Balbir Singh emphasised the need for round-the-clock oxygen supply, functional UPS systems, and operational generator sets to prevent any disruption in life-saving medical services. The minister also issued stringent directives regarding medicine supply, instructing civil surgeons to maintain at least one month's buffer stock of all 368 types of essential medicines and warned against any shortage of essential medicines. "No patient should be prescribed any medicines from outside the hospital," he declared. He said senior medical officers (SMOs) have been empowered to purchase any non-essential medicine as per their requirement, warning that strict disciplinary action would be taken against any non-complying medical officer. To bolster the medicine-dispensing system and overall patient experience, civil surgeons and SMOs were also directed to daily visit OPDs and collect patient feedback. To enhance patient satisfaction, Dr Balbir Singh directed civil surgeons to ensure that outpatient department (OPD) services must be delivered within an hour of the registration. In another move to enhance critical care capabilities, Dr Balbir Singh announced that every doctor and paramedic, including staff nurses, will undergo training in critical care and advanced life support. He also tasked each civil surgeon with submitting their district's health status in comparison to the Millennium Development Goals, enabling the department to set targets for better progress.
Jordan News
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Jordan News
UN80: Our Achievements Should Give Us Hope for a Better Future - Jordan News
Eighty years ago this month, the Charter of the United Nations was signed in San Francisco, turning the page on decades of war and offering hope for a better future. For 80 years the United Nations has stood as the highest expression of our hopes for international cooperation, and as the fullest embodiment of our aspiration to end the 'scourge of war.' Even in a world steeped in cynicism, this is a milestone worth acknowledging. اضافة اعلان The United Nations remains the only organisation of its kind, and the only one to have endured for so long. That longevity is remarkable when we consider the context of its founding: assembled from the rubble of not one, but two global cataclysms. Its predecessor, the League of Nations, had collapsed in disgrace. No organisation is flawless. But to paraphrase the second Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjöld: the United Nations was created not to take humanity to heaven but to save us from hell. In that mission, it has not failed. We continue to witness heart-wrenching scenes of war—in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine and elsewhere. The recent escalation between Iran and Israel is a stark reminder of the fragility of peace particularly in the tension-prone Middle East region. Yet amid the violence, we have managed to avert a third global war. In a nuclear age, that is an achievement we can never take for granted. It is one we must preserve with the full force of our efforts. Over the past eight decades, much of human development also bears the direct imprint of the United Nations. Consider the success of the Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000 by 189 Member States and more than 20 international organisations, which gave the world a shared roadmap for action. By 2015, compared to 1990, extreme poverty was more than halved. Child mortality had fallen by nearly 50 percent. And millions of children — especially girls who had long been denied the right — had entered school for the first time. Now, as we strive to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, we must build on that legacy of progress. We must continue efforts to eradicate poverty and hunger, achieve universal health coverage and produce and consume sustainably. There is another story of progress, often overlooked: the dismantling of empire. Eighty years ago, colonialism cast its shadow over much of the world. Today, more than 80 former colonies across Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific have gained independence and joined the United Nations. That transition, supported and legitimised by this Organisation, reshaped the global order. It was a triumph of self-determination, a profound affirmation of the Charter's most fundamental principle: the sovereign equality of all States. Evolving for the future The world has changed dramatically since 1945. Today, the Organisation faces a deepening liquidity crisis. Despite the promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, progress has been uneven. Gender equality continues to elude us. Our pledge to limit global temperature rise and protect our planet is slipping beyond reach. These setbacks do not warrant diminished ambition but greater resolve. The United Nations has always shown its worth in times of crisis. Its founders had witnessed humanity at its most destructive and responded not with despair, but with boldness. We must draw on these achievements. The spirit of San Francisco was not utopian. It was grounded in a sober understanding of what was at stake. It held that, even amid deep division, nations could still choose cooperation over conflict and action over apathy. We saw that spirit last September, when world leaders gathered in New York for the Summit of the Future. After difficult negotiations, they adopted the Pact for the Future and its annexes—the Declaration on Future Generations and the Global Digital Compact—by consensus. In doing so, they pledged to renew multilateralism for a world more complex, connected, and fragile than the one imagined in 1945. That spirit endures today. It lives in the resolve of 193 Member States, in the integrity of international civil servants, and in the quiet determination of those who believe firmly in the promise of the Charter. It is carried forward by the Secretary-General's UN80 initiative, which calls on us to deliver better for humanity; and to look to the future with adaptability and hope. As we mark this anniversary, we must rekindle the call for unity and solidarity that rang out from San Francisco 80 years ago. We built a world order once, in the ruins of war. We did so with vision and urgency. Now, again, we find ourselves at a moment of consequence. The risks are high. So too is our capacity to act.
The Star
02-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Vietnam drafts first population law to tackle demographic challenges
HANOI: For more than six decades, population work in Vietnam has been recognised as a top strategic priority, closely tied to the nation's sustainable development. Now, as Vietnam grapples with profound demographic shifts, the country is preparing to take a major legislative leap with the formulation of its first-ever Population Law. This proposed legislation, currently in draft form, represents a critical transition. No longer solely focused on family planning, the country is shifting towards a vision of population and development, a policy evolution designed to seize demographic advantages and proactively address looming challenges. Over recent years, Vietnam has made considerable progress in the field of its citizens. These achievements have helped boost per capita income, fuel economic growth, advance gender equality, protect the environment and improve social welfare. The country successfully met the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 and is now steadily progressing towards the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. These gains have laid the groundwork for Vietnam's pivot from a narrow focus on family planning, to a holistic approach to population and development. With a population of over 100 million people, Vietnam has been in a period of golden population structure since 2007. This is characterised by a large proportion of people of working age, a demographic window of opportunity for socio-economic development. However, experts warn that this window will not remain open indefinitely. Without the right policies in place, this demographic dividend could quickly turn into a liability as the population ages and the labour force shrinks. While Vietnam has maintained a replacement fertility rate around 2.1 children per woman since 2006, recent data suggests this rate is now on the decline. By 2024, the national average had dropped to 1.91, the lowest in the country's recorded history. This trend is particularly pronounced in major economic regions like the south-east and the Mekong Delta, where fertility rates have plummeted to between 1.48 and 1.62 children per woman. Conversely, more disadvantaged regions, such as the northern midlands and mountainous areas, continue to experience above-replacement fertility rates, reaching 2.34. This severe regional imbalance in fertility and population structure is a growing concern. It threatens to worsen inequalities, strain public services and hinder national cohesion and sustainable development. Experts warn that if current trends persist, Vietnam could exit its golden population period as early as 2039. This would trigger a chain of consequences, including labour shortages, increased social welfare burdens, imbalances in the insurance system and under-use of the existing social infrastructure. Deputy Director General of the General Office for Population and Family Planning, Dr Pham Vu Hoang, said that Vietnam's population policy now faces a host of challenges, including falling fertility rates, regional disparities, persistent gender imbalance at birth, rapid ageing, slow improvement in population quality and ineffective migration management. In response, the Ministry of Health is leading efforts to draft the country's first Population Law, a strategic and legislative upgrade from the 2003 Population Ordinance, which remains the existing legal framework. This move enhances the legal status of population policy and reflects its vital role in national development strategy. Deputy Minister of Health, Associate Professor Dr Nguyen Thi Lien Huong, emphasised the pressing need for this legislative step, noting that the new law is intended to give legal form to the Party's strategic directions on population. It will also lay the groundwork for addressing population ageing while making the most of Vietnam's golden population structure. She said the goal is to ensure that, by 2045, Vietnam becomes a country with high-quality human resources, a strong labour force, and is a high-income economy, thereby raising the nation's profile on the global stage. The draft Population Law is built around three key pillars aimed at addressing Vietnam's evolving demographic landscape. First, it seeks to maintain replacement-level fertility across the country through tailored strategies that reflect the unique characteristics of each region and population group. This approach is designed to prevent demographic imbalances and lessen the impact of population ageing, helping to secure a sustainable workforce in the years ahead. Second, the draft prioritises improving population quality from birth. Proposed measures include universal access to pre-marital counselling, broader prenatal and newborn screening, and stronger efforts to prevent genetic disorders and birth defects. It also calls for better nutrition, mental health support and early childhood development to ensure a healthier, more resilient population from the outset. Third, the law outlines policies to help the country adapt to a rapidly ageing population. These include safeguarding social security and healthcare access for older citizens. One notable proposal is to provide health insurance to elderly people who are currently uninsured, a proactive measure aimed at reducing the future burden on the healthcare and social insurance systems. A landmark shift in the draft law is its departure from the traditional mindset of controlling population growth. Instead, it embraces a vision of population as a development driver. Rather than strictly limiting the number of children per family, the law seeks to promote reasonable fertility based on individual choice and socio-economic conditions. For the first time, couples would be legally empowered to decide freely on the number and timing of their children, a dramatic departure from past rigid controls. This reflects a respect for personal autonomy and acknowledges the diverse aspirations of modern Vietnamese families. Supporting this shift is a recent policy change by the Party's Central Inspection Commission. From March 20 this year, Party members who have a third child will no longer face disciplinary action, a move hailed by Professor Nguyen Dình Cu, former Director of the Institute for Population and Social Affairs, as both timely and necessary. He noted that in light of declining fertility rates, particularly in urban areas, the change would help slow the downward trend and create a foundation for future regulatory reforms. To address low fertility in key areas such as industrial zones and large cities, the draft law introduces a notable incentive that gives women with two children priority access to social housing. This policy is designed to both encourage childbearing and support young families in balancing work and parenting responsibilities. In a further show of support for the elderly, the draft proposes state-purchased health insurance for those without coverage, ensuring equitable access to healthcare and improved quality of life in old age. The law also introduces stronger administrative penalties for violations in the population sector, reinforcing legal compliance and public awareness. Vietnam stands at a critical demographic turning point. For the first time, population dynamics are shaping nearly every aspect of national life, from economic growth and healthcare to education, security and political stability. As the country faces major shifts such as ageing, falling fertility, gender imbalances and changing migration patterns, the need for a modern, flexible legal framework has become urgent. A recent Ministry of Justice review affirms that the draft Population Law introduces breakthrough measures absent from current legislation, directly targeting the country's most pressing demographic challenges. Population is no longer just a figure — it is a strategic asset central to Vietnam's global competitiveness. This law is not merely a policy tool, but a roadmap for unlocking the nation's demographic potential and building a high-income, digitally-driven economy by 2045. - VNS via Vietnam News/ANN
