With a view to monitoring the health of pregnant women and infants, the Andhra Pradesh Government has decided to give health cards to them free of cost from September 2010.
Hospitals, both in Government and private sectors, will have to record all important parameters of pregnant women and infants to ensure that they take medicines according to the schedule. The cards would monitor the health of pregnant women through the nine months and that of children for five years.
Mr P.V. Ramesh, Secretary (Health), Government of Andhra Pradesh, said the State was lagging behind in maternal mortality rate (MMR) and infant mortality rate (IMR). By issuing cards, the State wanted to reduce these rates.
The Government would also give cards to 90 lakh children in Government schools next month. “We can reduce the drop-out rates and improve performance of the students by constantly monitoring their health and address problems, if any,” he said. With most villages lacking medical care, the Department also decided to depute doctors from the nearest primary health centres to all the villages in the vicinity.
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