Doctors across the country will now have to report not just notifiable diseases to the local health authorities but also any unusual symptoms that cannot be explained they see in their patients.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA), which has been aggressively supporting timely notification of notifiable diseases, now wants all doctors to start reporting any unusual symptoms that they notice in their patients. The association has been sending out mails to over two lakh member-doctors across the country.
National president of the IMA K.K. Aggarwal told The Hindu that this was essential especially in the wake of several new infections spreading rapidly. “With blurring of international boundaries and increasing travel, there is a threat of global spread of any infectious disease. The recent Zika virus infection outbreak in Mexico was declared a public health emergency of international concern, and Zika is still spreading,” he said.
He pointed out that every now and then, dengue raises its head. Last year, the national capital faced an unprecedented high number of chikungunya cases. Cases of bird flu have been reported in some States. China is in the midst of an avian influenza A epidemic.
Doctors alone can no longer be responsible for public health, Dr. Aggarwal said, and added that prevention and control of outbreaks also require commitment on the part of policymakers, administrators and all other stakeholders. “Notification of disease is a step in this endeavour and it strengthens public health surveillance systems. Notification is an important source of epidemiological information allowing mapping of affected areas, the epicentre in particular, so that preventive measures are taken to control the spread,” the doctor said. IMA State president Rajashekar S. Bellary said the 23,000 member-doctors in Karnataka were being communicated through the State unit. “According to the MCI Code of Ethics Regulations, 2002, it is mandatory for all physicians to notify the local public health authorities of every case of communicable disease they get to see. Our doctors are aware of this. Now we are also asking them to report any unusual symptoms,” he said.
A notifiable disease is any disease that is to be reported to government authorities by doctors as required by the law. “There are 22 notifiable diseases, and the IMA also wants cancer, Zika and microcephaly to be included in the notifiable list,” Dr. Aggarwal added.
