March 2019 digital v1

officers have been demanding
to revise the NPA as
recommended by the 7th Pay
Commission.
Kareena to lead
Serum’s vaccine
campaign
Serum Institute of India,
the vaccine maker, has
roped in the Bollywood
actress Kareena Kapoor Khan
to spread awareness on the
importance of vaccination and
immunisation across India.
Kareena is the campaign
ambassador for Swasth
Immunised India – a
nationwide vaccination and
immunisation campaign.
Serum has joined hands with
Network 18 for the campaign
that will focus on the need for
childhood immunisation.
Kareena will be advocating
the urgency and the need for
vaccination in the nation-wide
campaign lasting for a year.
The awareness campaign
comes at a time when the
number of non-vaccinators is
increasing the world over.
According to the figures
available with the ministry
of health, India has a
vaccination cover of about
70 percent. The country was
able to successfully eradicate
smallpox and polio through
intensive immunisation efforts.
However, the diphtheria
outbreak in some regions
of the country again turned
the spotlight on possible
vaccination gaps.
Serum Institute of India
is now the world’s largest
vaccine manufacturer by the
number of doses produced
and sold globally. The Punebased
company’s portfolio
includes vaccines for polio,
diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis,
Hib, BCG, hepatitis B, measles,
mumps and rubella. It is
estimated that about 65%
of the children in the world
receive at least one vaccine
manufactured by Serum.
UK surcharge
unfair: Indian
doctors
Indian doctors and
healthcare professionals
in the UK are campaigning
against an “unfair” doubling of
a health surcharge slapped on
professionals from outside the
European Union (EU) living
and working in Britain.
UK increased the
“Immigration Health
Surcharge”, which was
introduced in April 2015, to
GBP 400 from GBP 200 per
year from December last
year.
The surcharge
was applicable
to all in the UK
on a work,
study or
family visa for
longer than six
months. The hike
was imposed as part
of raising additional funds
for the country’s state-funded
National Health Service (NHS).
The payment is made at
the time of the immigration
application. The person
is required to pay the fee
annually until he or she is
granted indefinite leave to
remain (ILR) in the UK or
returns to their home country
at the end of their visa period.
Clinicians wishing to
work in the UK were already
facing burdensome processes
relating to regulation and
immigration, and this
surcharge was only going to
see UK losing out on quality
healthcare professionals from
non-EU countries, said a letter
sent to UK home secretary
from the British Association
of Physicians of Indian Origin
(BAPIO) seeking a rethink on
the surcharge.
MCI BOG nod for 2 super specialties in paediatrics
Medical Council of India
Board of governors
(MCI BOG) has given
recognition to DM in
paediatric neurology course
from the next academic year
onwards.
The new super specialty
course in paediatric neurology
has been included in the Post
Graduate Medical Education
Regulations, 2000 via an
official notification in the
Gazette of India.
According to the
notification, doctors qualified
in MD in paediatrics or MD
in general medicine can join
DM (Paediatric Neurology)
programme.
All India Institute of
Medical Sciences (AIIMS),
New Delhi had approached
the court seeking to start
the super specialty course.
Currently, the department
of paediatrics, AIIMS, New
Delhi offers one seat for DM
(Paediatric Neurology).
Also, the BOG has
given its go-ahead to the
inclusion of M Ch in paediatric
orthopaedics in the Post
Graduate Medical Education
Regulations, 2000.
The prior requirement
or feeder qualification for
M Ch (Paediatric
Orthopaedics) will be MS in
orthopaedics.
10 / FUTURE MEDICINE / March 2019