The National Institute of Health (NIH) of the United States will appoint a permanent representative in India, and has tied up with a Chennai Government hospital to create and maintain database for HIV/AIDS disease research.

The representative of NIH will be stationed in India by next year, and this is part of the strategy to further strengthen the relationship and co-operation between the two countries in the healthcare sector, according to Richard Haynes, consulate general, United States.

He noted that both the countries had a long history of understanding in the field of healthcare. The US has been supporting programmes on eradication of polio, leprosy, controlling diarrhoeal deaths etc. in India and the decision to station a permanent NIH representative in India could further boost the joint programmes and projects.

He said the US Consulate and the Atlanta based Centre for Disease Control have entered into a collaboration venture with the Government Thoracic Hospital at Thambaram. By this collaboration, the medical records at Thambaram hospital laboratory would be upgraded, besides conducting training programmes and support for information systems in HIV/AIDS laboratory. The study programme related to the database is expected to provide rich material for medical research undertaken to understand and control AIDS.

The electronic maintenance of medical records at the hospital would be of immense value to all countries trying to prevent and control the disease. It could be significant indicators of health patterns even to the US, as his country does not have sufficient personnel and expertise to undertake such a process, noted Richard Haynes, while talking at an Indo-US workshop on diabetic foot complications, organized by the Diabetes Research centre and MV Hospital for Diabetes, Chennai.

It is to be noted that the state government had identified the Government Hospital for Thoracic Medicine Thambaram for upgrading as a Regional Centre for AIDS Care, with a central government funded project of over Rs.15.40 crores.