Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswami launches new health programme

Chennai: In a bid to bring down the incidence of diabetes and blood pressure among women, Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Friday launched a door-to-door health programme under which paramedics will visit the public at their residence and record the basic health parameters related to non communicable diseases. The pilot project kickstarted at a function in secretariat will first address public residing in Perambalur, Krishnagiri and Pudhukottai. 

According to health department officials the three backward districts were selected in the first phase and this project will be extended in all the 32 districts of Tamil Nadu. The project will be supported by a network of 2223 primary health centres and government hospitals.

The paramedics will be equipped with glucometres and blood pressure machines during their door visits and the public who are suffering with symptoms of diabetes and blood pressure will be referred to the nearby government hospital for further medical intervention. 

The patients who are screened in the project will be supported under the State Insurance scheme, sources said. To improve the efficacy and to diagnose more patients under the scheme modern equipments like C scan, MRI, Cath labs and accelerators will be purchased and put to public use through government hospitals, sources said.

The chief minister also released a national health index prepared by national health mission and released a report on health Codex complied by the Madras Medical College.  Chief secretary Girija Vaidyanathan, health minister Vijaya Bhaskar and health secretary J. Radhakrishnan took part in the event.