The plague took us by surprise
ASHISH KUMAR MUKHERJEE is the Director General of Health Services (DGHS), and as the country's topmost health bureaucrat, was the man …
Ebola vaccine developed to fight bioterrorism
An experimental vaccine against the lethal Ebola virus has been administered to humans for the first time in November 2003. If the trial proves …
The revolutionary who transformed health care
ZAFRULLAH Chowdhury draws inspiration as much from Hippocrates as from Mao Zedong. To the first, he owes his medical ideals and to the second, …
Medical education in India does not address larger social needs for health care
Medical education is in the news for all the wrong reasons. The government's decision to extend reservations in institutions of higher education …
'I am rewriting Ayurvedic knowledge'
Vaidya Balendu Prakash is presently carrying out research work on Rasayan Shastra (metal therapy), based on ayurveda. He has been successfully …
Why diseases are "mysterious"
The government's public health system is completely defunct. Of late, there has been an alarming rise in disease outbreaks in the country. …
`Diseases have become a way of life in Gaza'
Born and raised in a refugee camp in Gaza, Izzeldin Abuelaish is a Palestinian doctor who has worked for reconciliation between Israel and …
Agony of the waiting
There is a strange calmness in the oncology department of government hospitals though it is more crowded that most other sections. Everybody waits.…
Children of a lesser State
A rare killer disease, Japanese encephalitis, has been annually and invariably breaking out in eastern Uttar Pradesh, India. This year, so far, 3,…
'It is strange that government promotes products which directly cause cancer'
Pankaj Chaturvedi, associate professor and head and neck cancer surgeon at Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, was recently honoured with the Judy …
Resurgent polio
Eradicating polio in India is proving to be a tough ask. The disease, which seemed to have been contained a few years ago, is rearing its head …
`Many doctors are simply businessmen'
Samiran Nundy, chairperson of the department of surgical gastroenterology and organ transplantation at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and editor-in-chief …
Whose budget is it, Mr Jaitley?
Being the first full year budget of the National Democratic Alliance government, there was expectation that the finance minister's announcements …
Troubled Beautiful Minds
They are there—each residential area has its mentally disturbed people; each family has anecdotes of crazy relatives. Nobody wants to …
Deconstructing science
Nature uses lean sources to get work done. The environmental crises we face today are a result of ignoring this simple paradigm for two centuries.…
Science for ecology
Down To Earth and the Centre for Science and Environment announce the winner of the 2001 Green Scientist Award. In the exercise to rate the …
Unhealthy countryside
It was once associated with the rich and urban. Today, hypertension is fast spreading in rural India. This is a cause for concern because …
Cockpit
In early December 2007, the country prided itself on providing the world with a road map to check the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5NI.…
Renal emergency
Sri Lanka’s north-central region has been facing a health crisis for two decades. A large number of people in the region suffer from …
Non-profit diseases
There is a logic to the idea of neglected diseases. Historically the diseases poor people get--largely in the poorer parts of the world--haven't …
WSSD: dialogue of the deaf
The needs of many were once again compromised to accommodate the demands of a powerful few. Given the alarming tilt towards self-interest and …
Universal health scare
The country’s planners are debating how to provide healthcare to all. In a drastic shift from the 65-year-old public health system, the …
Kind to cash
The government has a plan to reach welfare to the poor without wasting money. It wants to put hard cash in their hands instead of spending on …
More than half the world's population does not receive essential health care services
Under such circumstances, achieving universal health coverage by 2030 seems like an ambitious target
How drone, mobile-based platform bridging health care gap in Africa
Innovations are happening in the planet's remotest places hosting the poorest, and they aim to solve Africa’s biggest challenge of giving …