Open AccessNon-communicable diseases viewed as “collateral damage” of our decisions: Fixing accountabilities and finding sloutions in primary care settings
Author(s) -
Sudip Bhattacharya,
Ruchi Juyal,
MdMahbub Hossain,
Amarjeet Singh
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of family medicine and primary care
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2278-7135
pISSN - 2249-4863
DOI - 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_202_20
Subject(s) - collateral damage , medicine , collateral , pace , damages , public health , environmental health , urbanization , primary care , global health , economic growth , business , nursing , finance , family medicine , law , geography , criminology , geodesy , sociology , political science , economics
In the changing global socio-economic and epidemiological landscapes, non communicable diseases (NCDs) are affecting the health and wellbeing of populations. The burden is worse among people in low- and middle-income countries with more than 32 million deaths attributable to NCDs each year. This scenario can be explained through the concept of collateral damage, where intentional actions often lead to adverse consequences alongside the primary outcomes. Thus, NCDs can be viewed as collateral damage of unplanned urbanization, rapid globalization, fast pace of life etc., In addition, a lack of appropriate public health approaches has aggravated the situation. It is essential to build a collaborative approach engaging public health agencies to ensure that the developmental initiatives are without the threat of collateral damages and are people-friendly. This will help in reducing the burden of NCDs in primary care settings.