The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has formulated a new list of essential diagnostics on the lines of the essential medicines list, to ensure that quality diagnosis is provided at all levels of healthcare facilities.
“The list is on the lines of the drug list. It is a scientifically designed list, which has been based on the World Health Organization’s list of essential diagnostics for key areas like HIV and hepatitis, but it also takes into account the priority areas of non-communicable diseases and diseases prone to outbreaks such as dengue,” said Dr Kamini Walia, senior scientist at ICMR.
The essential diagnostics draft list, which has been put out for public consultation, contains 130 general laboratory tests and 26 disease-specific tests, which includes tests for HIV, hepatitis, dengue, and malaria.
Read more of this in a report by Anonna Dutt published in Hindustan Times....
