India registers about 700,000 to 800,000 burn admissions annually: Report
New Delhi, November 27:
India registers about 700,000 to 800,000 burn admissions annually and women belonging to lower socio-economic groups are at a very high risk of sustaining burns, says a report.
The report titled ”Burn Burden of the World” was released on Wednesday at a press conference ahead of the 19th Global Congress of International Society of Burn Injuries (ISBI) being held here from November 30-December 4.
Releasing the report, Dr Rajeev B Ahuja, immediate past President, ISBI and senior consultant, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi, said a comparative analysis titled ”Burn Burden of the World” throws light on burn problems in developing countries vis–vis developed countries. The report outlined problem areas and ways to improve burn care in India. The problem areas were divided into social conundrum, economic factors, shortage of trained manpower, and poor infrastructure for communication and coordination. And the suggestions to address these included greater investments to address manpower and resource crunch; continuous efforts to realise National Program For Prevention of Burn Injuries; strengthening Central Registry of Burns; running prevention programs and awareness campaigns at the district level; regular teaching programs and perhaps a qualification in burn management; arriving at cost effective treatments; improving referral modalities; opening regional centres of excellence; and encouraging political support for the cause.
”There is a need to approach burn care as a multifaceted process, only then we will be ableto create systems that are favourable for burn patients in our country,” Dr Ahuja added.
The high incidence of burns admission makes burns an endemic health hazard. Social, economic, and cultural factors interact to complicate the management, reporting, and prevention of burns. Research suggests women belonging to lower socio-economic groups are at an unusually high risk of sustaining burns. The commonest mode of burn injury is a flame burn. Most such incidents are related tomalfunctioning kerosene pressure stoves.
Talking about the upcoming 19th Global Congress of International Society of Burn Injuries, Dr William G Cioffi, President, International Society for Burn Injuries said, ”It is our privilege to host our Congress in India. ISBI is looking forward to share its learnings from around the globe as well as learn from experts here. The Congress will press forward specialised burn care in resource restricted countries of the world.”The conference which will kick off on November 30, will be inaugurated by Union Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change and Earth Sciences Minister Harsh Vardhan.
The 19th Congress of the International Society for Burn Injuries will bring together experts from all around the globe to deliberate on burn treatment, management and rehabilitation in New Delhi.
The Congress is aimed at promoting the concept of one world and one standard ofcare for patients suffering from thermal injury.