The Research Society for the Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI) has launched its “Save the feet and keep walking” campaign to mark its 50th anniversary.
The campaign aims at examine the feet of 50,000 diabetics across the country and analyse the data. “This is a national campaign of RSSDI, the largest organisation of diabetes care professionals in Asia,” said Vijay Viswanathan, vice-president and in-charge of the campaign.
The campaign, to run for a month, was launched on July 10. “We ended up screening 40,000 people all over India. Tamil Nadu has done the highest number with 14,940 persons screened. We have extended the campaign by a week so that we reach the target of 50,000,” Dr. Vijay said.
Across the country, around 9,000 doctors have registered. Through a link they must download a form and fill it after examining a patient’s feet.
“It takes exactly two minutes to examine the feet and another minute to enter the data. In three minutes, the data of 40,000 people from across the country has been collected. The campaign’s aim is to show that feet are important. The social aspect of the campaign is to improve foot care as amputation is common,” he said.
Till date there is no such data on foot examination done in a month, he added.
The questionnaire seeks information on the condition of nails, skin, blood flow to and sensation in the legs. The data will be sent to the Secretariat of the RSSDI for analysis.
“We wanted to sensitise all doctors about foot care. The link was sent to all diabetologists and they were told to examine the feet of the patients when they come to the doctor on a routine visit.”
