PGIMER 2019

PGIMER 2019

by | Dec 2, 2019 | Blog, Chronic Health Conditions

The Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, PGIMER, organized the  2nd Public Health Policy and Management Program from 30th September to the 4th of October, 2019. The program was sponsored by the Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India under ITEC scheme. The motivation of the program was “to enhance the understanding of senior level policy makers about best practices in Public Health Policy and Management of India for addressing contextual public health challenges for overall attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).” 

The director at IPH, Dr. Upendra Bhojani, delivered two lectures. The first one was on agenda setting and policy implementation of public health policies. The second lecture dealt with the politics of health policy. There were participants from more than a dozen countries. This was a flagship program of its kind on public health policies. Further collaboration between PGIMER and IPH was also discussed.


Photo Caption: PGIMER

 

World Day of Remembrance for road traffic victims

World Day of Remembrance for road traffic victims

by | Nov 17, 2019 | Blog, Chronic Health Conditions, Events, Latest Updates

Every year, about 1.5 lakh Indians die from road injuries while about 5 lakhs sustain serious injuries. Karnataka, with a population of over 6.1 crores, accounts for the third-largest number of road injuries and the fourth-highest number of road traffic deaths in India.

To remember the many millions killed and injured on the world’s roads, together with their families, friends and many others who are also affected, people around the world observe the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDR) in the month of November every year.

Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru in association with Maharani Cluster University, Bengaluru, along with Padmasree school of public health — under the banner of Safer Roads Bengaluru initiative organized an awareness program where the students formed a human chain on Saturday, 16th November 2019 to commemorate this Year’s World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDR).

Shri. P C Mohan, Member of Parliament inaugurated the program. Addressing the students, he said, “Karnataka alone witnesses around ten thousand deaths and more than 50000 injuries every year due to road crashes. Adhering to traffic rules is the only way to reduce this. Youth should stop showing negligence towards traffic rules. By following traffic rules, one can, not only save his own life but also contribute to safeguarding other’s life as well.”

 Dr. Asha Abikar, Deputy Director of State Road Safety Authority said “Bangalore city alone witnesses around 650 road traffic deaths every year. To safeguard the lives of road users, the Government has recently amended the Motor Vehicle Act and increased the fine amount.  People especially Youth should follow traffic rules and become an asset for the nation.”

Dr. Upendra Bhojani, Director of the Institute of Public Health explained the safer roads Bengaluru initiative and stressed the need for the people’s commitment towards road safety.

The event was presided by Prof. Dr. M.S. Reddy, Special Officer, Maharani Cluster University.

Mr. Kumaraswamy who lost his 20-year-old daughter in a recent road crash, narrated the painful loss of his daughter. He encouraged students to be mindful of traffic rules and road safety. 

THE ROAD to SAFETY – Awareness program on Road safety

THE ROAD to SAFETY – Awareness program on Road safety

by | Nov 3, 2019 | Blog, Chronic Health Conditions, Events, Latest Updates, post_slider, Road Safety

In order to create awareness among youth, especially college students, about the road safety measures and recent amendments to MV Act, Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru and HKBK Group of Institutions with the support of State Road Safety Authority had organized an awareness program titled “The Road to Safety” under the banner of the “Safer Roads Bengaluru” initiative at HKBK group of institutions on 18th October 2019.

The main intention of organizing this event at HKBK campus is that the selected campus one of the prominent institution at our selected stretch of road and has more than 3000 students studying on that campus.

Poster presentation, skits, role-play by students on road safety, quiz competition, and road safety awareness session by traffic police were organized as part of the event. Former Home Minister and present Member of Legislative Assembly Shri. K. J. George inaugurated the event. The event was presided by Shri. C. M. Faiz Mohammed, Director of HKBK Group of Institutions. Dr. Thriveni B S, public health expert and member of the BBMP NCD task force, Shri. Manzoor A. Khan, Secretary, HKBK Group of Institutions were the other guests for the event.

Winners of the competitions were rewarded ISI standard 2-wheeler helmets from the Safer Roads Bengaluru initiative. Around 600 students participated in the event.

Realist evaluation in health policy

Realist evaluation in health policy

by | Sep 23, 2019 | Blog, Chronic Health Conditions, Events, Latest Updates

Date

09-11 Oct 2019

Fees

INR 21,000

Venue

IPH

Facilitators:

Prashanth NS

Prashanth NS

Faculty and Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance Intermediate Fellow, Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru

Pragati Hebbar

Pragati Hebbar

Faculty and Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance Early Career Fellow, Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru

Are you thinking of using realist evaluation (RE) in your work? You have heard of realist evaluation but are unsure if it will work for you in your research or evaluation project? Or are you generally curious about health policy and programme evaluation and would like to learn about realist evaluation?

Then this 3 day workshop on realist evaluation is the most appropriate starting point for you to understand this approach. Through this hands-on workshop the concepts of theory-driven inquiry and particularly realist evaluation will be explained. The workshop will help participants understand and design a study based on realist evaluation using practical examples. Realist evaluation is an essential evaluation method that is idea to study programmes and policies in health. The starting point of a realist evaluation is the fact that programmes and policies work for some and not for others and hence the technique allows to explain how and why programmes and policies work, especially in complex health system settings.
If you are working or considering to work in these areas of health policy and systems research and would like to equip yourself with this approach join us from 9 – 11 October in Bengaluru for an immersive learning experience.
Workshop report

Tobacco Control |JIPMER 2019

Tobacco Control |JIPMER 2019

by | Sep 3, 2019 | Blog, Chronic Health Conditions, Latest Updates

The 5th National Workshop on Tobacco Control, held in JIPMER from 26th August to 30th August 2019, was attended by IPH researchers, Riddhi Dsouza,  Vivek Dsouza, and Adhip Amin. Three major themes were addressed in the Workshop. First, the history and politics of WHO’s Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (FCTC) where India is a signatory. The architecture, implementation, and consequences on tobacco consumption, of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA) — and the relationship between the FCTC and COTPA. Second, the basic principles of epidemiology in relation to tobacco use was covered. Furthermore on quantitative analysis, the second round of the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), in the context of India, was discussed. Third, the behavioral and psychological component of tobacco addiction — and strategies for tobacco cessation — was also reviewed. 


The director at IPH, Dr. Upendra Bhojani, delivered a lecture on the endgame strategies for tobacco control; what are the levers, mechanisms, and ideas, that can enable policy and law to generate a tobacco free generation. The point was also made that values are important in tobacco policy — how one approaches tobacco control will differ regarding a person’s moral and political philosophy — which we must acknowledge and respect.

Participants of the workshop

SARC-CCT in Sri Lanka

SARC-CCT in Sri Lanka

by | Aug 9, 2019 | Advocacy, Blog, Chronic Health Conditions, Latest Updates

Panelists Dr. Mary Assunta & Dr. Upendra Bhojani.
Image credit: SARC-CCT

The University of Colombo works systematically on tobacco control and was established as a tobacco observatory Sri Lanka in 2016. Recently, this observatory was expanded to the South Asia region to create the South Asian Regional Consortium Centre for Combating Tobacco (SARC-CCT). 

The centre organized an inaugural workshop, inviting researchers and advocates for the launch of the SARC-CCT on 15-18th July 2019, in Colombo. On invitation, the Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru (IPH) was represented & actively participated in the workshop.

Dr. Upendra Bhojani, representing IPH, also had the opportunity to serve as a panelist. Along with his panel members, Dr. Pranay Lal, Senior Technical Advisor, The Union, Delhi and Dr. Mary Assunta, Head of Global Research and Advocacy, Global Center for Good Governance in Tobacco Control, Thailand, Upendra contributed to a blog post that summarize common tobacco control challenges. The blog post is linked here.

The South Asian region has some shared history and common challenges of tobacco control and also offers some unique positive examples (Bhutan, Sri Lanka and India among others) to the world. This event was a key gathering of experts, which highlighted the unique insights that SAARC nations can offer in terms of tobacco control and the importance of close collaboration with other countries in the region.