IMA to sensitise girl students to safe menstrual mgmt

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 11

Under the “Mission Pink” initiative, the district unit of Indian Medical Association (IMA) will start awareness drives on menstrual hygiene management (MHM) and anaemia at government as well as private schools in the district.

Notably, the IMA is going to launch the initiative in different states across the country in the coming months on different dates. Under the national-level initiative, the main objective of the IMA will be to sensitise underprivileged girl students studying in government schools (mostly rural areas) in the country.

Under the mission, girl students in the age group of 10 to 19 years will be sensitised to use of sanitary pads and significance of maintaining menstrual hygiene.

Talking to The Tribune, Dr Vikas Chhabra, president of IMA, Bathinda, said, “The girl student will be sensitised to the ill-effects of using cloth during the menstrual cycle. And for girl students who cannot afford to buy sanitary pads, they would be trained to make sanitary pads with clothes at home itself.”

Dr Chhabra said, “We have already started forming a team of qualified doctors (gynaecologists) who would reach out to different schools in the district to spread awareness regarding menstrual hygiene. We would lay emphasis on government schools where girl students are not aware of menstrual hygiene as their parents are also not aware of this. Awareness drives would also be conducted in private schools as well. For the positive outcome of the programme, we will also take assistance from the Education Department, NGOs and the district Health Department.”

Girl students would also be examined for their haemoglobin levels and those found suffering from anaemia would be administered iron tablets. Besides, students would be apprised of how to do self-examination of the breasts to take precautionary measures regarding breast cancer.

It has been observed that owing to lack of awareness girls/women often ignore the symptoms for a long duration and seek medical help when the situation worsens or the disease advance to a next stage, diluting the chances of survival or complete treatment. So, students would be asked to seek medical intervention after spotting a lump or wound on their breast at an early stage. The mission pink is likely to start on January 26 and would continue for the rest of the year.

Initiative to begin in many states

• Notably, the IMA is going to launch the initiative in different states across the country in the coming months on different dates.