India can learn a lesson or two from Egypt on how to deal with hepatitis

In 2006, when Egypt formed a national committee to control the spread of Hepatitis, the country was known to have the highest burden of the disease globally. India, at the time, had still not acknowledged its growing Hepatitis numbers, while focusing on HIV and Tuberculosis.

Over the past decade, Egypt has come a long way, reducing Hepatitis prevalence from 4.5 per cent then to 1 per cent now, and, in the process, has provided a roadmap for the World Health Organisation (WHO) and countries like India, which is grappling with an estimated 6 million Hepatitis C (HCV) and 40 million Hepatitis B (HBV) cases.

The syringe culture is similar in Egypt and India. People take less oral medication and prefer injections. Syringe safety is necessary to prevent new cases. Egypt raised awareness on the use of sterile razors in barber shops, use of new instruments for pedicure and manicure and on the use of disposable syringes for patients. It’s all about advocacy. There should be multiple stakeholders like the government, politicians, the media and individuals from different sectors who wish to bring this health problem into the limelight.

The Egyptian government also urged Hepatitis drug manufacturing companies to lower costs. Direct cost of hepatitis treatment there was estimated at $ 670 million and the country was able to treat its patients at 1/10 the global price of the drugs.

The Hepatitis pool grew in Egypt in the 1950s and 1960s due to the reuse of glass syringes after boiling. It is believed that similar unsafe syringe practices have led to the increased cases in India. 

Egypt has now introduced a birth-dose policy to prevent new infections. The prevalence of HCV in Egyptian children has dropped to 0.8 percent from the 1.5 percent a decade ago.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has begun a vaccination drive for newborns against HBV under Mission Indradhanush, that is aimed to prevent seven diseases in infants. Since 2014, over 40 lakh children have been covered under the scheme. But there still stands no active diagnosis or free treatment programme for Hepatitis adult patients unlike AIDS or Tuberculosis.

The Health ministry has also roped in Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan to become the face of the campaign. Although delayed, the government is slowly moving towards disposable syringes with Maharashtra becoming one of first states to embrace one-time usable syringes.

Hopefully, in due course we can learn and implement many of the policies that have been successful in Egypt

Liver cirrhosis cases increasing in Rajasthan

Leading gastroenterologists in the state of Rajasthan shared their experience and knowledge on latest technology to treat gastro-related problems among adults and children at conference in Jaipur on Sunday.

The doctors expressed their concern over increasing number of liver cirrhosis among Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C patients. Almost 3% to 4% people in Jaipur are patients of Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. Out of these 20% to 30% people also get liver cirrhosis.

Young children could experience chronic constipation due to milk rich feeds, junk food, low intake of fluids and improper toilet training. Rota virus and Adino virus are most common cause of acute diarrhea which is a result of water borne infection. In such situation breast feeding and diet should continue along with intake of ORS.

Currently there is no effective treatment for Hepatitis and Cirrhosis in the allopathic medicine and the only effective treatment is through ayurvedic medicine.

 

Many world celebrities suffering from Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is a liver disorder which is caused by many ways such as blood transfusion, using infected needle, etc. It is transmitted by blood-to-blood contact, or by exposure to another person's infected blood. Hepatitis C can later on lead to many other liver problem such as cirrhosis or even liver cancer.

Many of the world celebrities from different walks of life are known to have Hepatitis C. Pamela Anderson is believed to have gotten Hepatitis C through the use of an infected needle. Brooke Ashley has gotten infected with Hepatitis and HIV during the making of a movie.

Christopher Kennedy Lawford is the nephew of President John F. Kennedy. Lawford grew up with U.S. presidents and movie stars as close relatives and personal friends. He is believed to have contracted it in his early years but it wasn’t until 2001 that Lawford was diagnosed with HCV.

Anita Pallenberg is an Italian-born actress, model, and fashion designer. She was the romantic partner of Rolling Stones multi-instrumentalist and guitarist Brian Jones and later the partner of Keith Richards, the guitarist of the same band. She is also known to have been infected with Hepatitis C.

Anita Roddick, founder of Body Shop chain of stores, and Rocky Aoki, the successful Japanese businessmen, contracted hepatitis C due to blood transfusion.

Many other celebrities such as Natalie Cole, David Crosby, Steven Tyler, Dharmachari Aryadaka and many more been diagnosed with Hepatitis C.

Hepatitis C does have any vaccine at this time and it is the leading cause of liver transplant in the United States. Thousands of people die each year from the disease. The symptoms of infection can be medically managed when the disease is diagnosed early, and a proportion of patients can be cleared of the virus by a course of anti-viral medicines. Like other liver disorders (such as cirrhosis, fatty liver, ascites), Hepatitis does not have proper treatment in allopathic medicine. In the alternative medicine world there are herbal or ayurvedic products which are proven to be effective in the treatment of hepatitis and treatment of liver disorders.

Selling Kamalahar online - Blue Ocean Strategy in pharmaceuticals

Khatore Pharmaceuticals was trying to figure out the right way to reach the masses who have been suffering from liver problem. When we analysed the industry and created the current strategy canvas it was clear that the industry consisted of players who were focused on going through the doctors. It created high cost for the companies and hence the customers had to pay a high price. At the same time there were many hurdles in reaching the patients for any good pharmaceutical company with a product which can be taken by the patients directly. In order to overcome the blockages the company had to redraw the strategy map of the industry and create innovative mechanisms of its own.

There was clear cut value in the product as it was proven to cure many of the liver disorders such as hepatitis, cirrhosis, fatty liver, ascites for which there was no cure in traditional medicine. Also there was big mass of customer who were untapped currently. The thing that was required was to come up with a right strategy to tap into this customer base.

The company went through the six path formulation of its strategy. By looking across industry, we found that what HP had done in online PC market can be applied to its product line up. HP had both traditional sellers like Best Buy, Fries Electronics, etc. At the same time it launched the online channel. Also looking at the time trend it became clear that internet is going to play an even bigger role in the buying decision of people. We also looked across chain of buyers and decided to eliminate some of the influencers that play a big role in the purchase when you are going through those channels. Instead it decided to stress on customers as brand ambassadors. They become the key player in its marketing channel by showcasing the testimonials of the beneficiaries.

The company also realigned the people proposition by reconfiguring its supply chain to suit the new way it was going to market Kamalahar. It also made exclusive deals with courier companies to provide speedy delivery to the customers so that their anxiety was reduced. It added 24/7 customer support line whereby people can call to get advice on the product.

The strategy was launched with much enthusiasm and slowly the business processes were adjusted for the execution of the new strategy. After the initial hicups the processes are in place now and after 1 year of execution it is clear that the product is now in pioneer category of PMS map.