Convergence Meeting with Health Officials organised by Tata Steel Foundation at Danagadi

Kalinganagar,: In a bid to improve preventive healthcare initiatives for the rural and tribal communities in and around Kalingangar, Tata Steel Foundation (TSF) organised avital ‘Convergence Meeting’with the District Health officials of Jajpur at the Community Health Centre (CHC) in Danagadi on Friday. The meeting, which saw prominent participation from the frontline health workers, was aimed at discussing the enhancement of public health programmes in the region.

The workshop was attended by more than 80 health officials including Block Health Officials, Community Health Officers (CHOs), Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANMs), Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs), and members of the Foundation’s Public Health Division.

The event was attended by Dr Sibasish Maharana, Chief District Medical Officer (CDMO), Jajpur, Dr Jyotiranjan Mahapatra, Medical Officer in Charge, CHC Danagadi, Mr Sudhir Kumar Mehta, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited (NINL), Dr Jyotiranjan Rout, District Epidemiologist, Jajpur, Nandiniprabha Lenka, Child Development Project Officer (CDPO), Jajpur and Medical Officers (MOs) of Gobardhanpur, and Jakhapura.

The objective of the meeting was to hold discussions around emergent health issues rampant in the region, implementable change-based solutions for communities, and carving an avenue for holistic collaboration. The key highlight of the discussion was to work on the ‘Non-Communicable Diseases’ (NCD) and‘Vector-borne Diseases’ (VBD) in the area with a focused and rigorous approach, identify prevalent cases of diabetes mellitus and hypertension amongst rural communities for seamless entry into the Government’s official NCD portal. Similarly, the identification of severe cases of malnutrition amongst children, their referral to the Nutrition Rehabilitation Centre (NRC), and an increase in awareness through targeted IEC activities were some of the other highlights that emerged out of the discussion and are poised for implementation within the Sukinda and Danagadi blocks of Kalinganagar in the coming days.

Additionally, avenues for collaboration were explored to leverage adolescent health and preventable blindness through Tata Steel Foundation’s ‘Regional Initiative for Safe Sexual Health by Today’s Adolescents’ (RISHTA) Project and ‘Project Drishti’.

“Joint initiatives between the Government institutions and TSF are crucial for leveraging the status of healthcare in the rural hamlets of Kalinganagar. By combining resources and expertise, the idea is to co-create and implement transformative healthcare solutions that not only enhance the quality of life but ensure medical aid is made accessible for all communities,” said Dr Anuj Bhatnagar, Head of Public Health, Tata Steel Foundation.

Efforts such as these, conducted in collaboration with communities andgovernment institutionsfurther highlight the Foundation’s commitment to co-create transformative solutions while instilling health-seeking behaviour amidst rural and tribal communities and enhancing public health systems in rural and tribal regions of Odisha.