MUHS ties up with tribal development dept for project

Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, will launch the multi- disciplinary tribal research project `Blossom’ at a function to be held on August 9, which is observed as World Tribal Day, at Nagpur.

A chair of excellence will be installed. “In the next three months around 22 teams will screen at least a population of 10,000 tribal people across remote villages,” Lt Gen (retd) Madhuri Kanitkar, Vice-Chancellor (VC) of MUHS, who was in Pune to attend the diamond jubilee celebrations of the graduate wing of Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), told The Indian Express. Kanitkar was also the former dean and deputy commandant of her alma mater AFMC.

Ravindra Thakare, Additional Tribal Commissioner, Government of Maharashtra, said that the Nagpur regional centre of MUHS has tied up with the tribal development department for the project. “We will conduct the initial screening across 18 villages in these remote locations,” Thakre told The Indian Express.

“MUHS has six regional centres. They have not been actively engaged in academics or research and while something new has been planned at each centre we were focused on setting up this tribal research project here,” Kanitkar said. After a selection process, Dr Dilip Gode who was till recently the VC of Datta Meghe Institute of Medical Science will head the chair of excellence, while Dr Sanjeev Choudhary while, an orthopaedic surgeon at the regional centre of MUHS at Nagpur, will coordinate the project.

“An associate professor will head the team of graduates, post-graduates from medical colleges under MUHS and along with ASHA workers to conduct a thorough screening of the tribal population in these villages. Accordingly, 22 teams have been set up,” Kanitkar said.

The screening will go beyond a general check-up and identify persons with breast cancer, liver and lifestyle diseases, sickle cell disease, sexually transmitted infections, osteoporosis and malnutrition (Blossom). Hence the acronym ‘Blossom’ for the tribal research project, the VC said. In the second phase data will be analysed and plans will be made to ensure better health care for the population, Kanitkar said.

National Medical Commission nod for PG training in 4 subjects at MUHS

After nine months of assuming charge as VC, Lt Gen (retd) Kanitkar said, “Our team at Maharashtra University of Health Sciences has delivered on the vision document that we have prepared which shows solutions have to come from within the community. If every institution has its development plan then energy and efforts get channelised to achieve this. Seventy-five per cent first year deliverables were done as per the plan.”

As part of achieving the target, Kanitkar said that they have now got a letter of permission from the National Medical Commission for post-graduate training in four subjects – paediatrics, gynaecology, emergency medicine and surgery. “We are waiting for a letter of permission for PG training in orthopaedics, anaesthesia and medicine,” she said. The VC said that they had planned to start a PG institute but instead of waiting to construct a building the effort was then to tie up with Nashik’s civil hospital. “We have inked an MoU with the civil hospital and now the letter of permission has been granted by NMC for 42 PG seats. A district residency programme has been worked out and we will have a fresh batch of PG students this year,” Kanitkar said.