MALHOTRAS ASHI-ANGEL CONCEPTFOR EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF HEPATITIS B AND C

Hepatitis B and C is prevalent in certain parts of India like Andhra Pradesh, North Eastern states, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. There are many challenges in these patients which start from identification of the disease, bringing them on treatment and getting it completed and later on problems faced in life even after successful completion of treatment. Our department is model treatment center under National Viral Hepatitis Control Program (NVHCP) and is high flow center and daily 70-80 patients of hepatitis B & C, including both new and old come for consultation and treatment.We have till date enrolled more than ten thousand patients of hepatitis B and treated 25,000 patients of hepatitis C in last fourteen years. Ashi in English means Smile, laughter, joy or blessing and Angel in English means messenger of God. Hepatitis B & C are transmissible diseases and not only general population but health care workers try to avoid these patients which leads to development of complex in these patients. We as a team were coming to know all this discrimination through patient and their relatives first hand version. Thus, it made us well versed with all kind of hurdles, challenges, myths, social taboos being faced by these patients and their family members.The health care workers should have empathy and not only sympathy towards patients. They should treat and help patients with human angle, thus giving joy & smile on their faces(ASHI) and, thus patients will accept them as messenger of God(ANGEL)which will lead to good compliance and successful outcome of treatment. This is MALHOTRAS ASHI-ANGEL CONCEPT in interest of better patient care and it is already showing its positive results.