In India, pneumonia and diarrhoea are leading causes of death among children below five years of age. As per report “Countdown to 2015”, pneumonia contributes to 11 per cent of deaths and diarrhoea accounts for another 11 per cent of total under-five deaths in India.
Under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), the Government has taken many steps for prevention and control of pneumonia and diarrhoea in children, Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, Sudip Bandyopadhyay said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha recently.
One of the important steps was promotion of early and exclusive breastfeeding offers protection against common childhood illnesses including diarrhoea and pneumonia. Infant and young child feeding practices are being promoted through the national health programme. Vitamin A supplementation programme covers children up to the age of 5 years and offers protection against diarrhoea and pneumonia by improving the immunity and is used as a preventive measure, he said.
“Promoting use of zinc and ORS is one of the priority activities for child survival. Oral rehydration salt (ORS) packets and zinc tablets are made available free of cost and mothers are taught how to use them. Awareness is being created amongst mothers on sanitation and hygiene and in the communities about the causes and treatment of diarrhoea through health education. Antibiotics for treatment of pneumonia and dysentery are made available through the public health system,” he said.
“The community health workers and facility based health service providers are trained in the management of diarrhoea and pneumonia through the Integrated Management of Neonatal and Childhood Illnesses (IMNCI) programme across the country. Under universal immunisation programme various vaccines are provided and these are DPT, measles and BCG that protect against diphtheria, pertussis, measles and tuberculosis. Vaccine against Haemophilus Influenzae Type B (Hib) infection has been introduced in the national immunization schedule for infants in the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the first phase,” he added.