JAGADISH JOSHI
Biography
Director, Province Health Directorate, Sudurpashchim Province
Preparing the health-related program, planning and carrying out the tasks according to the details through the provincial health offices and health institutions.
-Monitoring, Evaluation & Supervision of health programs, health offices, hospitals, and Ayurveda health centers within the Province
-Coordination among the Federal Ministry of Health & population, 88 local-level governments
Research Interest
Detection of Malnourished Children Below 5 years in Darchula, Nepal: The Impact of Universal Community-Based Screening
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Background: Proper nutrition is vital for health and the wellbeing of children. It supports physical growth, brain development, better immune function, prevent malnutrition and reduces the risk of mortality during the early period of life. However, reduction of malnutrition of the children remains highly concerning challenge globally and a priority (P1) program for the government of Nepal. The proportion of stunted and wasted
children below 5 years of age children in Sudurpashchim province were 41 and 14 per thousand live births, respectively, which is significantly higher than the national data, which is 32 and 12 per thousand live births, respectively. These children are at greater risk of morbidity and mortality due to severe acute malnutrition. Hence, it was necessary to conduct a district wide campaign to effectively detect malnourished children.
Methods: The Health Office of Darchula of Sudurpashchim province conducted a district wide campaign reaching out to take anthropometric assessment of children below the age of five years between July 1, 2021, and October 15, 2021. The data collected was analyzed to estimate the prevalence of malnutrition by types and severity among children of the study group.
Materials and Methods: The number of children below five from the Darchula District of Sudurpashchim province 5953. The data collected from these children was analyzed using universal anthropometric assessment. The Emergency Nutrition Assessment (ENA) for Standardized Monitoring and Assessment of Relief and Transitions (SMART) software was used to find out the prevalence of malnourished children in Darchula District of Sudurpashchim province of Nepal. The data was collected between July 1, 2021, and October 15, 2021. The study intended to analyse the findings out of 5953 under 5 children assessed from 43 wards of Darchula district where were done. severe acute malnutrition in terms of z-scores, oedema and 95% confidence intervals were obtained from data of the nutrition assessment campaign.
Results: A total of 5953 children from 43 wards from the Darchula District of Sudurpashchim province were admitted into the study. Analysis revealed the prevalence of Global acute malnutrition (GAM) at 10.6 % (CI 9.8 - 11.4 95%), Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) at 2.8 % (CI 2.4 - 3.3 95%), i.e. 162 children, and 450 children with Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM). However, before this campaign, only 9 SAM cases (6 in 2019 and 3 in 2020) were detected and treated during the two previous years.
