Role of ICT to improve Healthcare System in Rajasthan, India

The use of ICT/IT and its recent advances of technology could play important role in improving health systems in developing countries like India. Most of the hospitals in urban area are equipped with advanced tools using digitized analysis and embedded technology for operations but the use of ICT based administrative tools to coordinate activities and communicate knowledge in the area of health is limited. Combining a case study approach with a general discussion of the issues, this paper attempts to assess the potential benefits of a diverse range of ICT innovations and some of the constraints they will need to overcome. In this paper four broad areas are considered for the application of ICT in health system i.e. improvements in traditional health information systems, computer� aided diagnosis and treatment monitoring, a range of applications generically labeled �telemedicine� and the use of ICT to inform general population on health and healthcare. The final section speculates on the possible medium� term impacts of ICT in terms of improving the performance of existing systems, allowing scope for radical innovations or even changing basic assumptions about the service provider and patient relationship. In this paper an attempt has been made by the authors to assess the penetration of Information and Communication Technologies in present health care system in the State of Rajasthan in India. The impact of these technologies in health care system of the state has been studied in terms of various facilities existing in various hospitals established at the block, district and divisional level. The authors have tried to make an extensive study of various infrastructural facilities in these hospitals along with the use of ICT tools to make the best use of these facilities. The study of the existing healthcare system has been carried from the government. published available literature as well as by seeking public opinion through questionnaire and personal interviews. The data so obtained from the literature and through the questionnaires have been analyzed. Based on the observations made through the data analysis and by making a thorough investigations of the similar infrastructural facilities in the neighbouring states, the authors have proposed an ICT supported healthcare model for implementation in the state of Rajasthan with an objective to carry out the benefits of the facilities existing in district level hospitals and the village level hospitals as well

Pasture Establishment and Sustainability in Arid Region of Rajasthan, India: Prospects and Constraints

Rajasthan is the largest state of India and covers nearly 10.4 per cent (342.65 lakh ha) of total geographical area of the country. About 65 per cent of its population is dependent on agriculture. According to livestock census-2007, Rajasthan ranks at the third place (56.663 million) in the country for total livestock population after Uttar Pradesh (60.272 million) and Andhra Pradesh (60.175 million). The large livestock population of the state shows importance of fodder in the state. Western part of Rajasthan state covers the area of the state towards western side of Aravali range of hills, which divides the state almost in two parts viz., eastern and western. The western part of the state is important for animal husbandry and forage management point of view. The reason is that this region is characterized as arid region and at many places in this region annual rainfall is below 250 mm. Many times droughts occur in this region and crop production for grain purpose does not become successful. So, farmers remain more dependent on animals than crops. Important animals in this region are cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats and camels

Study on breastfeeding practices among rural women in the field practice areas of a tertiary care teaching hospital

Background: Breastfeeding is one of the most important determinants of child survival, birth spacing, and prevention of childhood infections. The beneficial effects of breastfeeding depend on breastfeeding initiation, its duration, and the age at which the breast-fed child is weaned. Data from NFHS-4 suggest that in India, in Gujarat where only 56% of infants are exclusively breastfed and 50% of infants are initiated with breastfeeding within one hour of birth. This study was planned to identify the gaps in breastfeeding practices so that necessary interventions can be designed and thereby implemented. The objective is to study the breastfeeding practices of mothers having children below 2 years of age in the field practice areas of the medical college and to associate the findings of these practices with the socio-demographic characteristics of the population.Methods: The study conducted was a community based cross-sectional one in the six villages of RHTC of PIMSR. The study was conducted by surveying a total of 204 mothers to study their breastfeeding practices which were categorized into ‘good’ and “not so good’ practices. From this the total score was calculated and associated with socio-demographic variables.Results: Majority of the mothers were in the age group 18-22 and educated up to ‘primary’ and most of them were from social class IV and V. Only 23% of the mothers had adequate knowledge of exclusive breastfeeding. About 70% practiced both early initiation of breastfeeding and feeding colostrum whereas nearly 80% practiced exclusive breastfeeding.Conclusions: It is concluded from the study that even though the practice of breastfeeding was found quite good, the gaps in the knowledge and practice must be addressed through health education and support through peer and health groups. Documenting the success stories will go a long way for community education and behavioral change in communication at the community level for adequate breastfeeding practices

Effect of storage temperature and duration on sugar content and sensory acceptability of strawberry pulp

Experiment was conducted to study the effect of different treatments on preservation of strawberry pulp at ambient and low storage temperature condition. The samples were pasteurized at 100°C for 15 minutes (T1), sodium benzoate 250 ppm (T2) and sodium benzoate 500 ppm (T3). The respective samples were stored for two months at room (25±5°C) and low (7±2°C) temperature conditions and reducing sugars; total sugar and sensory evaluation were recorded at three days of interval period. The results showed that the total sugar (%) increased in pulp sample maximum in T6 (5.9%) and minimum in T1 (4.8%), the maximum value regarding reducing sugars was recorded in T6 (4.9%) and minimum in T1 (1.4%) after 60th days of storage. However, reducing sugars and total sugar decreased in the stored pulp at room temperature and spoiled completely on 18th day of storage. The acceptability of organoleptic score decrease with the duration of storage in both ambient and low temperature. Among different treatments, sodium benzoate @ 500 ppm was found most effective and maintained the qualitative characteristics of preserved pulp at low (7±2°C) temperature condition. In future, these experimental results may prove very useful for storage of strawberry pulp for longer duration in better quality

Antagonistic potentiality of bioagents against wilt of cumin (Cuminum cyminum) caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cumini

Efficacy of various fungal and bacterial antagonists isolated from cumin rhizosphere were evaluated against wilt of cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.) caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cumini was observed under laboratory and green house conditions. The disease control potentiality of 15 selected antagonists used as seed treatment and soil application against Fusarium wilt was also studied under field conditions. The fungal antagonists Trichoderma viride (SIF-120), T. pseudokoningii (Tp-50), T. harzianum (Th-1) and C. sitophila (SIF-444) significantly (P≤0.05) inhibited the mycelial growth of F. oxysporum f. sp. cumini. The bacterial antagonists Pseudomonas fluorescens (Pf-5), P. fluorescens (Pfg-33), Bacillus subtilis (Bs-10) and B. subtilis (Bs-77) were found highly inhibitory to the pathogen under laboratory conditions. The seed treatment and soil application with T. viride (SIF-120), P. fluorescens (Pf-5) and T. pseudokoningii (Tp-50) provided effective disease control under green house conditions. T. viride (SIF-120) and P. fluorescens (Pf-5) bioagents used as seed treatment and soil application provided maximum control (70.03 and 67.14%, respectively), of cumin wilt under field conditions. Maximum root length, shoot length and dry weight were observed in response to T. viride (SIF-120) closely followed by P. fluorescens (Pf-5) treatments. Highest cumin seed yield (6.05 q/ha) was recorded in T. viride (SIF-120) treatment followed by P. fluorescens (Pf-5) and T. pseudokoningii (Tp-50) treatments

In Vitro Evaluation of Ethanolic Extracts of Ageratum conyzoides

In vitro efficacy of ethanolic extracts obtained from the aerial parts of Ageratum conyzoides and Artemisia absinthium was assessed on Rhipicephalus microplus using adult immersion test (AIT). Five concentrations of the extract (1.25%, 2.5%, 5%, 10%, and 20%) with three replications for each concentration were used in the bioassay. In AIT, the maximum mortality was recorded as 40% and 66.7% at 20% concentration for A. conyzoides and A. absinthium, respectively. Acaricidal activity was found to be higher in the extract of A. absinthium with LC50 and LC95 values of 11.2% and 61.7%, respectively. Egg mass weight of the live ticks treated with different concentrations of the extracts was significantly (P<0.05) lower than that of control ticks; consequently, the reproductive index and oviposition values of the treated ticks were reduced significantly (P<0.05). The A. conyzoides inhibited 90% hatching of eggs at the 20% concentration, whereas A. absinthium showed 100% inhibition at 5%, 10%, and 20% concentrations. The results show that A. absinthium has better acaricidal properties than A. conyzoides and could be useful in controlling R. microplus

Influence of organic and inorganic sources of fertilizers on growth, yield and economics of fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) cultivation under semi arid conditions

The experiment was conducted with eight treatments (absolute control and varying proportions of organic and inorganic sources of nutrients viz., 100% recommended dose of nitrogen (RDN) through fertilizers (90:45:0), 100% RDN through farm yard manure, 100% RDN through poultry manure, 100% RDN through vermicompost, 50% RDN through fertilizers + 50% RDN through farm yard manure, 50% RDN through fertilizers + 50% RDN through poultry manure and 50% RDN through fertilizers + 50% RDN through vermicompost). Results revealed that RDN through fertilizers and combinations of different organic and inorganic sources produced significantly higher grain yield over absolute control. RDN (100%) applied through fertilizers exhibited highest vegetative growth and yield attributes with maximum yield (2325 kg ha-1), net returns (Rs. 62,091 ha-1) and benefit cost ratio (3.01), closely followed by 50% RDN through fertilizers + 50% RDN through vermicompost. &nbsp

Prevalence and impact of gastrointestinal helminths on body weight gain in backyard chickens in subtropical and humid zone of Jammu, India

Necropsy of gastrointestinal tract of 125 free-range chickens from a subtropical and humid zone of northwestern India revealed four nematode spp. (Ascaridia galli, Heterakis gallinarum, Capillaria spp. and Cheilospirurahamulosa) and four cestode spp. (Raillietina cesticillus, Raillietina echinobothrida, Raillietina tetragona and Amoebotaenia cuneata) The overall prevalence of the helminth parasites was 72.0%. Amongst various helminth species encountered in the region, A. galli emerged out as the most prevalent, followed by H. gallinarum, R. cesticillus and R. echinobothrida. The impact of helminthic infections on body weight gain in growing chickens was investigated. One hundred growing chickens, aged 40 days were randomly assigned to two groups (treated and untreated controls) of 50 birds each. The birds in treated group were given fenbendazole at 7.5 mg per kg body weight in drinking water, while the birds in other group served as untreated controls. At the end of the 90 days of the field trial, the mean body weight gain of untreated controls was 1232.2 ± 7.28 g (13.7 g/day) compared with 1617.6 ± 5.43 g (18.0 g/day) in the treated group. It was associated with a significantly (P < 0.05) higher mean worm burden (32.92 ± 6.12) in untreated controls than the treated group (2.46 ± 1.14). The prevalences of helminthic species and their impact on body weight gain in growing backyard chickens have been discussed

Performance of improved varieties and technological interventions at farmers’ fields for cumin cultivation

Front line demonstrations on cumin consisting of two improved varieties (GC-4 and RZ-209) with scientific interventions viz., seed treatment (Bavistin @2.5 g kg-1 seed and Trichoderma viride @4 g kg-1 seed), and pre-emergence application of oxadiragil (Raft) @75 g a.i. ha-1 for effective weed management and application of recommended doses of nutrients (40:40:0 kg ha-1 NPK) for balanced nutrition and appropriate plant protection schedule [(Two sprays of malathion (0.2%), two sprays of Dithan M-45 (0.2%) and one spray of karathan (0.1%) for the control of aphids, blight and powdery mildew, respectively)] were carried out at farmers’ fields in two villages (Kajipura and Bhadal) of Jaipur and one village (Karad) of Sikar district of Rajasthan during Rabi season of 2011–12 and 2012–13. Study revealed that overall yield was increased by 21.09% over farmers’ practice due to the technological interventions with average yield of 536.50 kg ha-1. Overall extension gap of 112.50 kg ha-1 and technical gap of 463.50 kg ha-1 were recorded in the study with 46.35% technology index. Maximum additional return (Rs. 15,875 ha-1) with highest effective gain (Rs. 10,775 ha-1) and incremental B: C ratio (3.11) were obtained in the year 2011–12. However, the overall average additional return was Rs. 14601 ha-1 with effective gain of Rs. 9,401 ha-1 and incremental B: C ratio of 2.81. &nbsp