National Policy to fight diabetes- Health Minister

Sri Lanka has formulated a National Policy for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) based on a national plan to address different issues, Healthcare and Nutrition Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said.

Developing countries are facing an unavoidable epidemiological transition towards an epidemic of NCDs like diabetes, Minister de Silva said.

As predicted by the WHO, the growing trend of NCDs particularly in the low income countries will account for two third of all death globally in the next 25 years.

He was addressing the World Diabetes Summit for South East Asia Region in Chennai as the Chairman of the Executive Board of the WHO, recently. “Diabetes is a major contributor to the NCD burden today. It has affected 180 million people globally and likely to double in the next 25 years. “The pharmaceutical and equipment industry have a greater social responsibility to make diagnostics and drugs accessible to patients at an affordable price,” de Silva said.

Though Sri Lanka has very impressive health indicators, it is also one of the countries with a high incidence of diabetes, currently estimated at seven to eight per cent. Rapid urbanization, dietary changes and decreasing levels of physical activity are some causes for this, he said.

“A significant proportion of people with diabetes remain undiagnosed. We have already embarked upon different strategies such as creating awareness for health promotion and prevention of diabetes, screening at grass roots level coupled with provision of care and services for the diseased and for secondary prevention,” he said.

“We have developed a public-private partnership. With the financial assistance given by the private sector including multinational companies we were able to open diabetic clinics at major hospitals in some of the Provinces including the North and East,” de Silva said.