SAANS Campaign:
Health and Medical Education Minister of Karnataka, K. Sudhakar launched the ‘Social Awareness and Action to Neutralise Pneumonia Successfully’ (SAANS) on 20th April 2022.
- SAANS is a campaign that has been launched to ensure early detection and greater awareness of pneumonia in children under the age of five
- Pneumonia is a lung infection that is caused due to viral, bacterial, or fungal infection.
- As per SRS 2018, Karnataka’s under-five mortality is at 28 per 1000 live births.
- By 2025, the state’s goal is to reduce the under-five mortality to 23 per 1,000 live.
- Also, to achieve the National Health Policy goals, pneumonia mortality has to be reduced to less than 3 deaths per 1,000 live births.
- In India, childhood pneumonia still remains a health threat to the children who are aged below five years contributing to 15 percent of the nation’s under-five deaths.
- Community awareness generation through extensive mass media and digital campaigns regarding pneumonia has been taken up by the State.
- To generate awareness, ASHA workers have also been roped in.
- Also, across the state, facility-level management for severe pneumonia cases is being strengthened.
- Along with this, skill stations are being set up and the healthcare providers are also being provided skill-based training.
- All healthcare providers in the state are taking up active screening of the children who are under-five for management and early identification of pneumonia.
