What’s AYUSH been up to?
Exploring the initiatives launched by the Ministry of AYUSH amidst the pandemic
In India, many still believe in the olden methods used by the sages and those that were used in the medieval period and for the very same we have the Ministry of AYUSH expanding their reach to make our rich heritage come to the forefront to cure and treat many oncoming infections and diseases.
The health priorities of the population have been evolving significantly over the last few decades. Here’s a look at some factors that have contributed to this process:
- Although maternal and child mortality has rapidly declined, there is a growing burden on account of non-communicable diseases and some infectious diseases.
- The second important change is the emergence of a robust health care industry estimated to be growing at double-digit.
- The third change is the growing incidences of catastrophic expenditure due to health care costs, which are presently estimated to be one of the major contributors to poverty.
- Fourth, rising economic growth has enabled enhanced fiscal capacity.
Therefore, new health policies should respond to these contextual changes. The National Health Policy, 2017 (NHP, 2017) seeks to reach everyone in a comprehensive integrated way to move towards wellness. It aims at achieving universal health coverage and delivering quality health care services to all at affordable cost and the Ministry of AYUSH has indeed given many plausible solutions to make these changes.
About the Ministry Of AYUSH
AYUSH is the acronym for the alternative medical systems practised in India. It stands for Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy. These systems are based on definite medical philosophies and represent a way of healthy living with established concepts on prevention of diseases and promotion of health. The basic approach of all these systems on health, disease and treatment is holistic. It is due to this fact that there has been a resurgence of interest in AYUSH systems. Yoga has now become the icon of global health and many countries have started integrating it in their health care delivery system. Similarly, there is a great curiosity to understand the principles and practice of Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Siddha and Unani especially due to growing challenges in medicine in Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), Lifestyle disorders, long term diseases, multidrug-resistant diseases, the emergence of new diseases and so forth.
India has a rich heritage of medical wisdom derived from the Vedas that prevailed as Ayurveda. This was further enriched by the ancient Saints (Rishi’s) with the Siddha system and Yoga practices. These were the principal medical practices of the country for centuries, forming part of Indian ethos and culture. Unani Tibb that was known from the period of Hippocrates came to India during 8th Century A D. Subsequently, the Western medicine that is based on biomedical concepts, commonly known as Allopathy, came to India and also got assimilated into the Indian medical practice. Homoeopathy, a system developed in Germany in the 18th century, quickly gained popularity and has got blended with the Indian traditional medical practices due to similarity in its holistic medical philosophy and principles. Naturopathy, a drugless system of healthy living practices of all civilizations, got organized and also became part of the medical pluralism of the country. Thus, there evolved a unique medical paradigm with traditional practices along with Biomedicine.
Many institutes come directly under the Ministry of AYUSH. The National Institute of Siddha, established in Chennai in 2005 is a joint venture of the Centre and the State. It is affiliated with the Tamil Nadu Dr M.G.R. Medical University and also is the headquarters of the Central Council of Research in Siddha (CCSR). The National Institute of Unani Medicine in Bangalore is also a similar venture established in 1984. This institute also offers Post Graduate Courses (MD in Unani) in eight different specializations in collaboration with Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences. The National Research Institute in Panchakarma was set up in 1971 at Cheruthuruthy and provides an excellent platform for research and also has provision for both professional and academic training. The entire list of these institutes enlisted by the Ministry with their affiliate links can be found here.
Role During the Pandemic
The Ministry of AYUSH has indeed risen to the occasion and it has come up with a series of efforts to curb the spreading of the virus. It has come up with a separate Dashboard for COVID-19 which gives one all sorts of information related to the same such as their research on COVID-19, AYUSH Drugs and Medicines, AYUSH Communications, AYUSH research, AYUSH Support as well as related links for the same and related topics.
The website has a very detailed yet easy to use structuring which makes its use on both large screens as well as handheld screen devices very easy. They also have a trackable e-pharmacy which can provide necessary medication such as immunity boosters.
The AYUSH Sanjivani App also gives support to a lot of smartphone users. The App has been curated for Android users and also provides support on both Facebook and Twitter.
Running into Trouble
The Govt. Of India released an advisory via the Ministry of Ayush which was endorsed by the PM himself. The complete list of the Ministry’s Ayurveda Immunity boosting measures for self-care during the pandemic can be found here.
The advisory begins by enumerating a variety of ‘best practices’ to ensure good health and protection from infections, including commonly recognised advice like “maintain personal hygiene”, “stay home when you are sick” and “contact a nearby hospital immediately” if you suspect a viral infection. However, experts feel that interleaving such widely accepted protocols with advice from Homoeopathic, Unani and Ayurvedic practitioners are what makes the advisory dangerous.
For example, it also recommends ingesting different phytotherapeutic concoctions to “strengthen the immune system” and others “useful in the symptomatic management of coronavirus infection”. Researchers are yet to validate the ability of any of these substances to help manage a coronavirus infection; even if they begin now, the exercise will take at least a year to be completed if researchers, as well as test subjects, participate in the dozens around the country and the thousands, respectively.
The latest controversy that has brought the Ministry of AYUSH to the limelight is Patanjali’s CORONIL. This medication has been claimed to provide a cure for the COVID-19 although it has been given license under the AYUSH guidelines as an immunity booster.
To sum up this issue, I think it is best to refer to the wisdom of Dr Faheem Younus
