Africa has adopted a PEN-PLUS new strategy to boost access to the diagnosis, treatment and care of severe non-communicable diseases.
The strategy is aimed at bridging the access gap in treatment and care of patients with chronic and severe NCDs. A Regional Strategy to Address Severe Non-communicable Diseases at First Level Referral Health Facilities.
The new strategy urges countries to put in place standardised programmes to tackle these diseases by ensuring that essential medicines, technologies and diagnostics are available and accessible in district hospitals.
According to WHO, about 58 million people die every year in India due to NCDs. NCDs include heart diseases, cancers, diabetes, asthma among others.