A large, nationally representative study of diabetes in India has found that more than 10% of Indians living in urban areas are affected with the disorder. However, the more worrisome fact is that half the population living with diabetes has absolutely no knowledge of it. This is intriguing when we consider the several innovations in health care taking place around the world.
At present, American biopharmaceutical researchers are developing over 170 types of medication for Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes and related disorders such as diabetic neuropathy and chronic kidney disease. Therefore, there is a relentless global drive to invent fresh, life-saving and life-improving treatments to counter diabetes, apart from paying close attention to the attendant costs. These advancements are not only changing the way researchers and doctors are approaching diabetes treatment but are also having an enormous potential impact to helping people live longer and healthier lives.
However, our government has a long way to go in order to integrate world innovation with health policies and tackle an epidemic such as diabetes. This is pertinent as the country’s productive segment of the population —its youth — is increasingly being exposed to non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which translates into prolonged treatment cycles or premature death. Thus, without a proper policy to integrate global innovation into the India’s health-care realm, the nation’s development is in jeopardy.
Seize the opportunity
Global innovation in Indian health care is critical to our future. For people living with diabetes, nearly every aspect of their life gets affected. This includes special dietary concerns and the necessary lifestyle alterations, along with daily medicines and regular check-ups. At the same time, there are multiple global innovations that have come into place in recent times and capable of improving the quality of patients’ lives.
For the past 15 years, insulin delivery methods have progressed, from ordinary vials and syringes, to insulin pens and a sensor-augmented pump therapy. Some of the recent, incredible innovations in this space include a wireless glucose monitor that can send blood sugar data to a smart phone, an insulin pen that can tell you when the last dose was administered to you, and an artificial pancreas system that utilises algorithm-based logic on a smart phone to automatically deliver appropriate levels of insulin.
In essence there is a huge opportunity to introduce new global innovations in our country and bring about a positive change in the lives of those with diabetes.
Medical innovation and intellectual property rights (IPR) also go hand in hand. Health care is one of the few sectors that calls for ongoing investment and persistent research, innovation and development. This is because delivering pioneering medicines to tackle the ever-increasing occurrence of new diseases, is central to health care and pharmaceuticals. Therefore, a robust world-class IPR policy, and a system that ensures enforcement of that policy is of paramount importance in the Indian health-care environment and the management of diseases such as diabetes.
While there are numerous medicines under development for the disease, the clamour for a strong IPR in the country needs more intensity if we are to fortify our efforts to tackle diabetes. A United Nations report of 2016 says that diabetes and cardiovascular diseases may cost the Indian economy a colossal $6.2 trillion (₹400 lakh crore) in the 2012-2030 period. It also warns of a rampant increase in cases in countries such as India, where urbanisation is growing. A new IHS Markit report, titled “The clinical and economic benefits of better treatment of adult medicaid beneficiaries with diabetes,” finds unequivocally that better diabetes management saves money and improves patient outcomes.
In short, integrating global innovation with the help of a powerful IPR might be the only effective pill we have in applying the brakes on the burgeoning threat that diabetes poses.
Dr. Vishwanath Mohan is Chairman and Chief Diabetologist, Dr. Mohan’s Diabetes Specialities Centre
