Ernakulam: The Kerala Government has extended the 'Mittayi' project, a free healthcare initiative, to ensure free, efficient treatment and management of children with Type-1 diabetes, to nine more districts in the state, thus bringing under it all the 14 districts in the state.
The satellite centres for the projects in various districts were inaugurated by Minister R Bindu at a function held at Ernakulam on Tuesday. The Mittayi project will ensure timely treatment, medicine, and care for children living with Type-1 diabetes. This project will ensure the active participation of these children in public life.
A study by the Kerala Government has revealed that the majority of the children/adolescents in the state suffering from Type-1 diabetes are from poor socio-economic backgrounds, and lifelong management of the disease has been a major challenge for them. So the government decided to launch the programme to bring this population under the social safety network. The awareness about Type-1 diabetes, which is a chronic ailment, is very little in society.
The only treatment option is insulin administration and frequent monitoring to ensure good glycemic control. The treatment options for Type -1 diabetes are entirely different from Type-2 diabetes seen among adults. So the government felt the need to increase the awareness and provide free treatment for the children affected with Type-1 diabetes.
Mittayi project is being implemented by Kerala Social Security Mission under the Social Justice Department with technical assistance from Health and Family Welfare department. The project has multiple assignments as its key focus area. Early identification of the disease, awareness creation among health care workers, social workers, parents, teachers, and the public, strengthening infrastructure for efficient and effective diagnosis of Type-1 diabetes, providing monitoring and comprehensive treatment at free of cost to affected children, free treatment to complications related to the chronic illness, and systemic and scientific nutritional management and monitoring are the key areas in focus.
An empanelment of doctors is created for this purpose in all districts who will diagnose and decide on the treatment protocol.
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