Latest news with #Primary
The Star
2 days ago
- Health
- The Star
MOH unveils key guidelines on thalassemia prevention, treatment
PUTRAJAYA: The Health Ministry (MOH) has launched five key documents to serve as comprehensive references on thalassemia, addressing diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and the importance of genetic counseling. These documents include the National Thalassemia Control and Prevention Programme Strategic Plan and Action Plan 2024-2030, the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Thalassemia (Second Edition), the Malaysia Thalassemia Registry Annual Report 2022-2023, the National Thalassemia Screening Programme Guidelines for Primary Healthcare, and the Thalassemia Carrier Mapping and Report from the Screening Programme for Form 4 Students (2017-2021). Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said the launch demonstrates MOH's strong commitment to enhancing efforts in thalassemia prevention and treatment. "Thalassemia is a hereditary condition with a long and complex treatment process that can cost up to RM2.74mil. "More importantly, it is a preventable disease. Early screening, genetic health education, and counseling not only meet policy objectives but also serve as cost-saving measures and social investments for the health of future generations,' he said in a statement on Sunday (June 1). Dr Dzulkefly also highlighted that 212 thalassemia patients have been successfully cured through bone marrow transplants to date. "Besides transplants, continuous prevention efforts have significantly reduced new thalassemia births by 49 per cent over the past 12 years (2009-2021),' he added. - Bernama
Hans India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Hans India
APCC slams coalition govt over schools' closure
Vijayawada: Narapareddy Kiran Kumar Reddy, official spokesperson for the Congress Party, on Friday strongly condemned the ruling coalition government's policies regarding education, particularly the closure of schools and the proposed changes to the medium of instruction. Reddy highlighted a stark contrast between past and present educational policies. 'Under the Congress government, during the tenure of late YS Rajasekhara Reddy, thousands of primary schools were established in undivided Andhra Pradesh to ensure every poor child had access to education as part of the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act,' he stated. 'Today, the coalition government is closing thousands of schools.' He expressed concern that the bifurcation of primary schools into 'Basic Primary Schools' and 'Model Primary Schools' is an attempt by the coalition government to deprive poor students of education. He further warned, 'Out of approximately 33,000 primary schools in the state, only 7,000 to 8,000 are being designated as Model Primary Schools. The remaining Basic Primary Schools are at risk of closing in the coming days.' Reddy criticised the government's decision to convert all schools into single-medium English schools, completely eliminating Telugu medium education, which he termed 'atrocious.' He condemned the previous YSRCP government for allegedly selling medical seats under the NRI quota in newly-established government medical colleges. He also slammed the current coalition government's reported plans to hand over medical colleges to private entities. He also pointed out the failure to pay wages to MGNREGS workers for several months, despite the scheme which was introduced by the Congress Party specified payment within 15 days. 'Under the leadership of State party president Sharmila, all Congress Party cadres will question all anti-people actions of the coalition government on behalf of the public and in matters concerning public issues,' Reddy concluded.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Utah's House to elect new leadership. Here's who's running
SALT LAKE CITY () — Utah's House majority will hold elections for a new House Majority Leader on Tuesday, June 3, and several hopefuls could usher in a completely new leadership team under House Speaker Mike Schultz (R-Hooper). The announcement that Rep. Jefferson Moss (R-Eagle Mountain) will be moving to the executive branch to head the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity (GOEO) leaves a vacancy for the House majority's number two leadership role, Majority Leader. Multiple sources with knowledge of internal communications with the caucus confirm to ABC4 that two members of the current leadership will be vying for it, Reps. Karianne Lisonbee (R-Syracuse) and Casey Snider (R-Logan). Under House rules, anyone currently serving in leadership and running for an open position must resign from their current leadership position. That means that Lisonbee's current position as Majority Whip and Snider's current position as Assistant Whip will also open up. Lt. Gov. Henderson gets more death threats over Primary signature gathering issues — How will they be handled? The following Republican representatives, listed in order alphabetically by last name, are running for the open positions: Karianne Lisonbee (R-Syracuse) Casey Snider (R-Logan) Jeff Burton (R-Spanish Fork) Candice Pierucci (R-Herriman) Jordan Teuscher (R-South Jordan) Ryan Wilcox (R-North Ogden) Bridger Bolinder (R-Grantsville) Cory Maloy (R-Lehi) Karen Petersen (R-Smithfield) Rex Shipp (R-Parowan) Gov. Cox signs executive order to establish new council focused on Utah's future and 'quality of life' Another possible shift, Rep. Teuscher is currently the powerful House Rules Chair, who helps decide which bills make it out of the rules committee to be heard by the larger body. If he wins the Whip position, he would likely have to give up that role due to the time constraints. However, it's at the Speaker's discretion who he appoints as Rules Chair. 'One of the primary responsibilities of the Whip is to serve as a liaison with the Senate and to help unify and strengthen our caucus,' said Teuscher. 'I believe I bring the right combination of experience, skills, temperament, and relationships to be effective in that role—and to ensure our caucus continues to drive the conversation on the most important issues facing our state and is successful in getting our policy objectives to the finish line.' Teuscher has ushered in some controversial legislation in the past, most recently the ban on collective bargaining, HB267, which currently faces a referendum that will be put before voters to decide whether or not to overturn it after labor groups While the current field of candidates is pretty settled, the source said, representatives do have until Monday morning to declare their intent to run. It's also possible that representatives not included in this list could be nominated by the body during the election for any of the open positions. Utah unveils new housing dashboard in effort to hit 'moonshot' goal of building 35,000 starter homes The vacancy by Rep. Moss is also adding another wrinkle to the elections. His seat has yet to be filled via a special election, decided by the Utah County Republican Party. That means that the House majority will have 60 members voting in the election, not 61, leaving the possibility for a tie. House majority elections require a simple majority vote, and it's unclear exactly what would happen in that case, however, the rules would suggest that voting would continue until there is a majority. Political insiders who spoke with ABC4 about the race say it is unusual for two members of the current leadership to be running against each other. Typically, those already in leadership positions tend to slide into a vacant and more prominent role. Those insiders also say there is pent-up demand to be in leadership, as evidenced by the number of people running. The House majority's elections are not public, but the new leadership team will be announced Tuesday evening after the vote. President Trump gives Elon Musk an Oval Office send-off Musk slams New York Times after report on alleged drug use GOP plan could raise credit requirements for Pell Grant recipients Musk appears in Oval Office with black eye Utah's House to elect new leadership. Here's who's running Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- Health
- The Hindu
Menstrual hygiene awareness held at UPHCs
On the occasion of World Menstrual Hygiene Day on May 28 (Wednesday), awareness sessions were held at all 18 Urban Primary Health Centres (UPHC) in the city. Teenagers and women, including post-natal mothers from the area, attended the sessions, which aimed to educate them on the importance of maintaining menstrual hygiene. The sessions emphasised the safe disposal of sanitary napkins, as improper disposal can lead to clogs in drains. Participants were advised to make an identification mark on the used napkins so that sanitary workers engaged in waste segregation could directly dispose them in incinerators. They were also informed about the availability of free sanitary napkins at anganwadis and UPHCs. Additionally, free sanitary napkins were distributed to the attendees. At the Ramalinga Nagar UPHC, around 28 girls and 15 post-natal mothers attended the session and received free sanitary napkins.
Scoop
23-05-2025
- Health
- Scoop
Budget 2025 Fails Rural Health Promises – Hauora Taiwhenua Warns Of Growing Inequities
Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network is sounding the alarm following today's Budget announcement, which has failed to acknowledge — let alone invest in — rural health. 'For a National-led Government, we would expect the word rural to appear somewhere in the health budget. Instead, rural New Zealand seems to have been sidelined once again,' says Dr Grant Davidson, Chief Executive of Hauora Taiwhenua. The Government has also failed to act on the flagship rural health policy it entered the last election on and reiterated in its first 100-day plan once elected: the establishment of a third medical school at the University of Waikato focussing on rural general practice. In budget 2025 there is no investment or plan outlined for increasing rural medical placements, either through existing institutions or by establishing a new school. This inaction comes at a time when the rural workforce is in crisis and struggling to meet the needs of growing, ageing, and often underserved populations. We looked forward to congratulating a Government on implementing long-term planning for the rural health workforce but have been sadly let down. The health budget has increased by 4.8% overall which doesn't cover increases in the cost of health care delivery and population gains. The Budget lacks any specific commitment to address long-standing inequities in rural healthcare. We are waiting to see what capitation uplift will be offered, but early signs are that this is likely to be less than the Health New Zealand calculated increase in the cost of health services of 6.4% which will mean any gap will need to be made up by further increases to patient co-payments, which will need to be well above 6.4%. Any increased fees will only decrease access to general practice to those who most need it and then cause a further decline in already poor health outcomes in rural areas where there are higher populations of low-income, older and Māori populations. The funding for Comprehensive Primary and Community Care (CPCT) Teams, which allowed extra funding for general practices to add allied health and healthcare workers to their teams to improve services, has also been discontinued. Hopes that Budget 2025 would deliver pay parity for primary care nurses have also been dashed. Instead, legislative changes mean any progress will now be delayed at best. Primary care nurses, especially those working in rural settings, continue to be paid significantly less than their hospital counterparts, worsening recruitment and retention challenges. Hauora Taiwhenua is also raising concerns about the proposed transfer of mental health crisis response responsibilities from Police to health services. Funding to support the transfer of responsibility of this from Police is included in the budget. This may offer long-term benefits in urban centres, but it raises serious questions for rural areas, where health teams are already stretched and crisis response capacity is limited or non-existent. We are waiting to see if any resourcing or rural contingency planning will be announced to support this shift in the implementation phase. We acknowledge the pre-budget announcements to enact a Primary Care Action Plan, including funding for urgent and unplanned care initiatives. We are excited by the potential to finally deal with the major issue of providing after-hours and urgent care in rural and remote areas, including surges in demand during holiday times. But there is little detail around these and no ring-fenced funding for implementing them in rural areas. The Minister's commitment to what he terms 'enhanced capitation funding' is for the delivery of extra services and targets that have not yet been announced, not for the support of already underfunded rural primary care. We understand that Health New Zealand's own analysis shows that delivery of primary care in rural and remote areas costs more than in urban areas, and yet the project to re-weight capitation formulas to provide increased base payments for those in rural areas where increased costs and high co-morbidity demands lie has been put on hold. There is still some possibility that Health New Zealand may choose to commit some of its increased funding in operational spending to improve the sustainability of under-siege community-owned rural hospitals and interprofessional rural training hubs that are in the Health NZ workforce plan, but we have been holding our breath for over a year already on both of these projects. 'Budget 2025 was an opportunity to demonstrate that rural Aotearoa matters. Instead, it sends a message that the promises made before the election are not being honoured,' says Dr Davidson. 'Without urgent action, we risk further erosion of rural health services and deepening inequities for the communities who already struggle most to access care.' Hauora Taiwhenua Chair, Dr Fiona Bolden summarises, 'This is a budget which will leave rural health providers and rural communities feeling even more despairing than before when it comes to the sustainability/viability of rural health services and the safety of patients.' Hauora Taiwhenua will continue to work with the Government, policymakers, Agency staff, rural providers and the community to ensure that the voices of rural New Zealand are heard — and that future decisions reflect their needs and realities. 'We know that delivering healthcare in rural and remote areas comes with unique challenges and opportunities,' says Dr Davidson. 'Our members are ready to work with Government and Health New Zealand to co-design solutions that ensure rural communities receive equitable, high-quality care.'
