Hepatitis awareness programme launched for Mumbai slums

Marking World Hepatitis Day, National Liver Foundation Saturday launched an awareness and medical care programme on hepatitis-B in the city’s slums.

The voluntary organisation’s pilot project named ‘Pahal’ will aim at disease eradication through screening, immunisation, medical care and interventions targeting pregnant women.

“With lessons learnt from our project in the slums of Mumbai, we hope to take this movement across the nation. This is a three-pronged information, education and communication mission towards eradicating Hepatitis-B from India,” said Samir R. Shah, general secretary, National Liver Foundation.

The project has been launched in collaboration with United Way of Mumbai and AmeriCares India and has the support of union health ministry and Rotary.

Meanwhile, All India Institute of Medical Sciences organised a public lecture on hepatitis in New Delhi Saturday.

Hepatitis-B, a liver ailment, spreads mainly through blood or sexual contact, and affects 30 million people in the country.