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UNITED NATIONS

  • 29/09/2000
  • WHO

To ensure that the South East Asian Region can have the best health care possible, the 53 session of World Health Organisation (WHO) for this region has made several recommendations. These include, insuring that no unfair disparities occur in providing healthcare to rich or poor people and enhancing health infrastructure. Discussions were also undertaken on accessibility and quality of blood, reducing food and water borne diseases, minimising incidences of blindness due to infections, old age or nutritional deficiencies, lowering maternal deaths, controlling marketing, trade and consumption of tobacco and collaboration between various countries to reduce communicable diseases. Gro Harlem Brundtland, director general of WHO, called this year the "turning point for improvement in health for the world's entire population.' Brundtland added that improving health conditions is the key instrument to break the debilitating cycle of poverty. C P Mathur, minister of health and family welfare, while inaugurating the session expressed his concern regarding the increasing dependence of people on private health sector in India. He added that the government must take steps to ensure better health facilities. He urged WHO to help countries develop alternative systems of medicine.

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