Health Min pushes further deadlines to make new AIIMS-like institutions operational

The Union health ministry has further pushed the deadline for making the proposed six AIIMS-like institutions fully operational. According to the new deadline, the medical colleges at six sites will be made functional from academic year 2012-13 and hospitals in the year 2013-14.

As per the earlier plans, these hospitals were to be functional by the end of this year as the project has been on for almost five years now. The Government had approved setting up of six AIIMS-like institutions in the states of Bihar (Patna), Chhattisgarh (Raipur), Madhya Pradesh (Bhopal), Orissa (Bhubaneswar), Rajasthan (Jodhpur) and Uttarakhand (Rishikesh) under the first phase of Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY).

“Construction of Medical Colleges and Hospital Complexes at all the six AIIMS-like institutions in first phase has started and is in full swing. Residential complexes at Jodhpur and Raipur have been completed and the work is in progress at remaining sites. An amount of Rs.847 crore has been released so far,” according to official sources.

“The sites for setting up AIIMS-like institutions have been identified on the basis of various socio-economic indicators like human development index, literacy rate, population living below poverty line, per capita income, and health indicators like population to bed ratio, prevalence rate of serious communicable diseases, infant mortality rate etc.,” Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad had stated in the Parliament recently.

To manage the running of the new institutions, the health ministry has also appointed mentor institutes. As per this, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi will be the mentor institute for the two new institutions at Patna and Bhubaneswar. Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh will take care of the two institutions at Rishikesh and Jodhpur. Jawaharlal Institute of Post-graduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry will run the affairs of the two new institutions at Bhopal and Raipur, sources said.

The new institutions were planned under the PMSSY with a view to ensure better and wider medical care in the tertiary healthcare sector. The Union Government approved the scheme in March 2006.

Health ministry finalises 9-member panel to study efficacy, safety of human placental extract

The union health ministry has finalised the 9-member expert committee to go into the issue of efficacy and safety data of human placental extract which has been banned by the government along with some other controversial drugs including the non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug nimesulide suspension, gastroprokinetic agent cisapride and decongestant drug Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) on February 10 this year.

Renowned pharmacologist Dr YK Gupta of AIIMS will head the panel. Other members of the committee include Dr Ajay Kumar of IMA, Dr Vijay Kumar of IDRI, Dr Sharma of ICMR, Dr Kotwal of AIIMS, Dr VK Tiwari, Dr VK Chakravorthy, Dr CM Sharma and Dr Lakhbir Dhaliwal of PGI, Chandigarh.

The expert panel has been constituted by the ministry on the directive of the Delhi High Court which heard a petition on April 6 by the Kolkatta-based pharma company Albert David Ltd, which was a pioneer in human placental extract therapy, for staying the government notification in which the controversial drugs were banned in the country.

Refusing to grant stay on the ministry's notification banning the controversial drug human placental extract, the court asked the government to constitute a 9-member expert committee to go into the issue of efficacy and safety data of human placental extract. The expert committee has been asked to submit a report on the matter by May 15 this year.

The union health ministry had banned several controversial drugs including human placental extract following the Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB)'s recommendation to the ministry to ban these drugs after it was found by the Board that these drugs will have adverse effects on human health. The DTAB is the highest decision-making body under the Union health ministry on technical matters.

Human placental extract was one of the controversial drugs which was under the radar of the health ministry for some time. In India, human placenta extract sold as Placentrex lotion, gel and injection is being actively promoted as a remedy for a variety of unrelated disorders such as vitiligo, wound dressing, prevention of adverse effects due to radiotherapy, fallopian tube blockage, female infertility, scarring, post-phlebitic ulcers, scars due to acne, etc.

But, that is not the case in the international market, especially in the developed countries. According to reports, all products containing extract of human placenta have been banned by the US FDA since they can transit diseases and pose serious health hazards to consumers. Placenta extract was never permitted for use as medicine in the western countries such as US, UK, Australia, Canada and European Union states due to lack of efficacy and safety data. However, some companies in US were importing products containing human placenta as dietary supplements. However, on April 14, 2008, all products containing human placenta extracts even for use as cosmetics have been banned by the US government.