Cancer patients often self medicate with vitamins and mineral supplements and other dietary supplements during the course of cancer treatment. Dr. Shital Raval examines the commonly suggested supplements and herbs and the associated risks.
During cancer treatment, eating right is extremely important in order to sustain the side-effects of cancer drugs as well as combat weight loss. Many patients find it difficult to eat, possibly due to loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, etc. or eat a well-…
Retail giant Big Bazaar has opened its stores to persons with disabilities by introducing inclusion initiatives and infrastructural changes that are disabled-friendly. An interview with Vineet Saraiwalla, Inclusion Lead, Future Retail Limited, who has helmed the movement and himself has 90% visual impairment on what needs to be done behind the scenes to make this feasible. It is for the first time that Big Bazaar’s Republic Day sale had an exclusive 2 day preview in all its stores for…
Travel is extremely important for the growth and development of the visually impaired, stresses Preeti Monga, a veteran traveller and the blind expert of Enable Travel, an accessible holiday specialist. You are a veteran traveller, having toured over a dozen countries and visited almost every state in India. What has been your experience as a blind traveller? I love travelling; it is my passion. I think a huge chunk of my knowledge bank has come to me because of my travels. You learn so much…
Can you imagine a child who has never been to a playground or a park, never been able to swing or slide! For whom open play spaces are forbidding and unfriendly. Today, in India nearly all existing outdoor play spaces are built without keeping in mind the needs of a child with disability. Children with disabilities and developmental differences are forced to stay away from playgrounds because they are inaccessible, do not have appropriate facilities and play infrastructure for them. When…
People get umpteen health news forwards and they often forward without verifying. Some even think "may be it will help some one". Dr. Aju Mathew, medical oncologist and director, Kerala Cancer Care shares his tips on how to spot the fake news forwards and whether you should forward or not. We live in an era of information superhighway. In a way, this is a more democratic way of communication. Everyone has a voice - not just those with power or knowledge. But in the cacophony of the voices, the…
On World Human Rights Day and the day after World Patient Safety Day, TogetherWeCan and PatientsEngage would like to bring the focus on safety of children at therapy centres. Despite an ongoing petition in Kerala since 2015, progress has been slow. Why is a child's right to safety not a priority? In light of a couple of recent incidents, we bring you an update on the petition on therapy centre regulation by Seema Lal. In October 2018 the following incident happened in a government therapy…
A global investigation called ImplantFiles found an absence of clear guidelines on testing, poor regulatory practices and lack of transparency resulting in pain to patients and in some cases even untimely death. As the medical device industry innovates at a rapid pace and flaws found in devices trigger recalls and safety alerts, Dr. Shital Raval looks at what the patient can do to reduce the risk. How safe are the medical devices implanted into your body? Did you know that medical…
Ritika Sahni, a singer-activist, special educator and Founder of NGO Trinayani, an advocacy driven organization, emphasises that it is important to change attitudes and mindset of the non-disabled population if we want to make the world more inclusive for persons with disabilities. Could you tell us a little about Trinayani and how was it conceptualized? Trinayani is an NGO founded in 2006. It has been working towards creating awareness about disability and diversity issues and empowering…
Males suffering from depression have an increased vulnerability to dying by suicide. Clinical psychologist Smriti Sawhney advices it is important to seek professional help and lists out tips to alleviate depression. Boys are not supposed to cry. And, if you cry you are weak. And, being emotional is so ‘girly’. Most boys tend to hear these and other similar statements during their growing up years. Internalising such statements can make it difficult later on for men to express or share their…
