Health a priority concern; related to productivity, stresses VP Dhankar

Medical professionals serve as guardians, and the role is all the more significant in Bharat, which is home to one-sixth of humanity, Vice President added

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar highlighted the direct relation between the health of an individual, the productivity of the individual, and the overall health of the society during an event at Aiims Jodhpur on Saturday.

Addressing the 64th convocation of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS) at Aiims Jodhpur, VP Dhankar said, "Health is paramount and a priority concern, as good health is not only necessary for an individual, not for our pursuits, but for the good health of the society."

"That broadly is also your theme. Friends, having good health is directly related to your productivity, as I said. If you are not healthy, your productivity will not be optimal. Rather than helping others, you might be seeking other's help," he further said.

 

Dhankhar expressed concern over the commercialisation and ethical dilution in the medical profession.

"Medical professionals serve as guardians, and the role is all the more significant in Bharat, which is home to one-sixth of humanity. Your concern must be beyond clinical care. You have to engage in advocacy of good health. You have to become educators and public health advocates. However, the healthcare sector faces significant challenges today. The challenges of commercialisation and ethical dilution are required to be addressed. Healthcare is a divine contribution. Healthcare is a service. Healthcare has to be far distant from commerce, and healthcare is antithetical to exploitation," he added.

Underscoring the need for a healthy society to make 'Viksit Bharat at 2047', the Vice President stressed, "We are having an exponential economic upsurge and phenomenal infrastructure growth. In the last few years, this has made India, which once was part of the Fragile Five economies, a big five global economy, on the way to becoming the third largest global economy."

"This aspirational object requires an 8-fold increase in our per capita income, and this takes me to something which is of interest. This is attainable only with our population being healthy and fit. One may be committed, sincere, earnest, gifted, and devoted, but if that person is not physically healthy, rather than helping the society at large with his dedication and expertise, he will be seeking help. And therefore everyone in the country must remain healthy," he said.

The Vice President urged the industry leaders to support the manufacturing of medical equipment in India.

"We must engage and strongly champion locally manufactured medical equipment. Let us demolish the myth that imported items are superior; not any longer. Through this platform, I will urge Indian industry, business, trade and commerce to engage in activities of making medical equipment in the country for the nation, also for the world," he said.

Advocating for preventive wellness education and cautioning against the risks of a digital lifestyle, Dhankhar stated, "I strongly advocate and plead with health care experts, please champion preventive wellness education with a special focus on combat, and this is something new, this is rampant and this is a digital lifestyle. This digital lifestyle comes with risks. That may be existential."

"I would urge that it is your ordainment to educate families so that they take care of it right from the beginning. We are having youth engaging in drugs, getting into depression, and having mental stress in a country which according to the IMF, is a favourite global destination of investment and opportunity. Therefore, they require massive hand-holding to get them away from their attraction to the screen-dominated world," the VP stated.

Shiv Sarin, President, NAMS, Punya Salila Srivastava, IAS, Secretary Health & Family Welfare, Government of India, Rajesh Sudhir Gokhale, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, GD Puri, Director, Aiims Jodhpur, and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion.