WHO Country office for India in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India and National Health Systems Resource Centre (NHSRC) formally announced the commencement of NHSRC, as the WHO Collaborating Centre for Priority Medical Devices & Health Technology Policy.
The event was inaugurated by Mr Bhanu Pratap Sharma, Secretary, Health & Family Welfare, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India. Dr Nata Menabde, WHO Representative to India, handed over the designation of WHO Collaborating Centre commencement at NHSRC to Mr Bhanu Pratap Sharma, Secretary, Health and Family Welfare.
Senior officials including Mr C K Mishra, Additional Secretary and Mission Director (National Health Mission); Mr Manoj Jhalani, Joint Secretary (Policy); Mr K L Sharma, Joint Secretary(Regulations); Sri Nagesh Prabhu, Joint Secretary, Department of Health Research; and Dr. GN Singh, Drug Controller General of India, amongst others were present at the event.
The Division of Healthcare Technologies & Innovations, NHSRC now becoming the ‘WHO Collaborating Centre for Priority Medical Devices & Health Technology Policy’, would further strengthen this technical association, for greater reach, acceptability and use of critical knowledge amongst public health partners, and foster advancement of health goals in India as well as mission of the World Health Organization.
The Division of Healthcare Technology & Innovation at NHSRC has been working in the area of health technologies and related policy interface. The scope of its work includes: framing of technical specifications for technologies procured under National Health Mission; best practices for technology life cycle management and maintenance; secretariat for assessment and uptake of innovations into public health systems; health technology systems research such as proposing roadmap for establishing testing laboratories; supporting MoHFW on issues related to free essential diagnostics and other technology intensive services; domestic manufacturing capacity, quality & safety criteria for healthcare technologies; and conducting health technology assessments.
Recognizing the potential of health technology policy in improving access to health, WHO through its Collaborating Centres has been working over the past few years to introduce Health Technology Assessment (HTA) in Member States, apart from partnering in promoting other health technology projects. Pioneering effort has been made in India to bring HTA to the forefront. Assessments of over 50 technologies have been completed, compendium of HTAs have been jointly published by NHSRC and WHO Country Office for India. In addition, NHSRC and WHO Country Office have been jointly conducting Health Technology Assessment Fellowships once every six months and over 300 professionals have been trained so far from across scientific institutions in the country over past 5 such programs. With respect to other activities, while WHO has made generic specifications for 75 medical devices and NHSRC has formulated for 169 devices required up to district level. Such scientific activities lead to mutual sharing of technical information between NHSRC and WHO and improvement of availability of technically complex information to a wider range of stakeholders. The ultimate aim of all these initiatives has been to improve access to healthcare technologies and improving public health.