NAHARLAGUN, Mar 30: NHM Mission Director Dr Tapasya Raghav emphasized the role of medical officers and nurses in managing newborns and children at the community level to reduce the infant death rate in the state.
“Medical officers and nurses should discharge their duties sincerely while managing newborns and children at home as well as at the health centres, thereby filling the shortage of paediatricians in the remote areas,” said Dr Raghav.
She was addressing the inaugural session of an 11-day training programme on ‘Faculty-based integrated management of neonatal and childhood illness (F-IMNCI)’ for medical officers and staff nurses at a hotel here on Thursday.
Stating that she was disappointed to see higher infant mortality rate in Arunachal Pradesh, Dr Raghav urged the medical officers and the nurses to make all-out efforts to cut down the infant death rate.
Family Welfare Director, Dr K Lego, who inaugurated a similar, eight-day, training programme for newly-appointed ANMs at the NHM training hall on the same day, said the nurses must take care of newborn babies, whether it be an institutional or home delivery, to minimize the infant mortality rate.
“IMNCI is a systematic approach to children’s health which focuses on the whole physical development of a child, including curative care and prevention of diseases,” Dr Lego said.
NHM nodal officer T Taku explained that F-IMNCI has been developed to “address the skill gaps found in health facilities.” He said it aims to provide optimum skills and help build capacities of the medical officers and staff nurses to address child morbidity and mortality, and managing newborns and children, both at the community level and the health centres.
The resource persons for the training are Ruksin FRU SMO Dr Otem Yomso, Dr Gagam Dai from the Pasighat general hospital, and Dr T Lollen for medical officers and nurses, and Drs W Shin and K Darin for IMNCI training for the staff nurses.
