Promoting Heart Health in Rural Women-limitations in access to health care: Dr Sushil

STATE TIMES NEWS

JAMMU: In view of increasing cardiac morbidity and mortality in rural women on unprecedentant scale and very minimalistic healthcare setups in rural areas Head Department of Cardiology GMCH Jammu, Dr Sushil Sharma held a day long Cardiac Awareness cum health Check up camp at Shiv Temple in Village Kangrail area of Tehsil Bhalwal District Jammu in which particular focus on cardiac issues of women particularly younger age group and educated them about the healthy heart lifestyle for better future of coming generations and reduce both social and economic burden.
While interacting with the people, Dr Sushil stated that Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death for rural women.
Lifestyle change interventions in group settings focused on increasing physical activity and improving nutrition have been shown to help reduce the risk for CVD.
Compared to women in urban areas, women in rural communities have higher cardiovascular disease risk, are more likely to have obesity and tend to have less access to health care and healthy food, previous research has shown, Dr Sushil said.
While community health programs have shown promise, little research has looked at these programs in rural settings, he added.
He elaborated that Cardiovascular disease remains the most common cause of death among women and men today. During the past 5 decades, basic discoveries and clinical research studies have uncovered important biological differences between women and men, and differences in their respective responses to social, environmental, and behavioral stresses, as well. The underrepresentation of women in all aspects of biological research has delayed the pace of these discoveries and hindered effective translation. Hence, the role of genetic, molecular, cellular, and physiological factors, including sex and gender, social determinants of health (SDOH), behaviors, environment, and policy in women’s health are only beginning to be understood.
He further told to the masses with particular focus on female community told that efforts need to be directed toward providing education and skill building for CVD prevention based on a better understanding of women’s cultural beliefs and life situations. All women should be educated that dietary choices were important for cardiovascular health; however, they lacked the skills for food selection and preparation. Family preference and support are key to the adoption and maintenance of a heart-healthy eating plan. For interventions, women should prefer active learning (hands-on experiences) coupled with group classes for learning and support. Rural women usually lack these resources or access to a nutritionist. It is urgent to address these pervasive gaps in knowledge and care delivery to reduce sex-based disparities and achieve equity.
He further told that we should be committed to advancing cardiovascular health for all by including charting cardiovascular health and identifying and removing barriers to health care access and quality. Achieving this goal requires driving advances in discovery and translation, raising awareness, empowering and engaging communities, and advocating relentlessly to ensure health care access and quality health for all, he added.
Prominent members of the area Dr Shallu Sharma (Sarpanch), Subhash Chander (Panch), Rajan Sharma, Virender Sharma, Sunny Jatt and Gagandeep Singh appreciated the efforts of Dr Sushil and his team for conducting cardiac awareness cum health Checkup in their locality.
Others who were part of this Camp includes Dr Nasir Ali Choudhary and Dr Yashwant Sharma. Paramedics and volunteers includes Raghav Rajput, Kamal Sharma, Rajkumar, Mukesh Kumar, Rajinder Singh, Rahul Sharma, Faisal Rashid, Moosa Mushtaq, Manoj Sharma, Gourav Sharma, Vikas Kumar and Amandeep Singh.