I am on my way to Jesus and Mary College once again. I am conducting a Breast Health Workshop there for about a hundred students of the non-collegiate education department.
This is my second trip to JMC and it brings back so many memories. My first health awareness talk was delivered ten years ago to the students of JMC on the 13th of December, 2001. I spoke on Menstrual Health.
How do I remember the date so well? Well, there is a story behind it. I was new in Delhi. Had heard that it was an unsafe city but life for me had been pretty safe till that day. After I was done with the talk, I was taken to the canteen for some refreshments but soon enough was asked to leave the college campus. There was panic everywhere...people were rushing home. I took an autorickshaw back home and there were police checking on almost all roads. Roads were clogged. How happy I was to be back home with my little daughter!
That fateful day, the Indian Parliament House was under terrorist attack. It was my first brush with the terror in Delhi and how things fell back to normal after a few hours of commotion. After that I have heard of many terror attacks in Delhi but I guess we have 'got used to it' by now. The fear has never been as great as that particular day in December.
Friday, November 4, 2011
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
October is the Breast Cancer Awareness month. You may have been hearing and reading a lot about breast cancer already. Do you sometimes feel that you are being overloaded with information about breast cancer? And the pink campaign is all a big farce?
There is a lot of discussion about it worldwide. But back here in India, we still have a long way to go where breast cancer awareness is concerned.
True... breast cancer is not as common here as in the US and Europe (where one in seven women has it). But it is disheartening to read the WHO (World Health Organization) report that less than 5% of Indian women between 50 and 70 years of age underwent a screening mammogram. Even those who underwent a screening mammogram rarely followed it up with another mammogram.
Clinical breast examination is also not something women get on a regular basis. Most women here still consider breast health a taboo topic and are not comfortable getting their breasts examined when they are apparently 'healthy'. Even when they are ready to go for a clinical breast examination they start looking for a female doctor...and it has to be a doctor that she and her family knows well.
There are breast clinics in major cities but very few to cater to the millions of Indian women. Moreover, not too many women walk into breast clinics unless they are continuously stimulated with breast cancer awareness programs and write-ups.
As we talk about breast cancer awareness, I thought of sharing my earlier article on the common myths about breast cancer. Hope you find it helpful.
There is a lot of discussion about it worldwide. But back here in India, we still have a long way to go where breast cancer awareness is concerned.
True... breast cancer is not as common here as in the US and Europe (where one in seven women has it). But it is disheartening to read the WHO (World Health Organization) report that less than 5% of Indian women between 50 and 70 years of age underwent a screening mammogram. Even those who underwent a screening mammogram rarely followed it up with another mammogram.
Clinical breast examination is also not something women get on a regular basis. Most women here still consider breast health a taboo topic and are not comfortable getting their breasts examined when they are apparently 'healthy'. Even when they are ready to go for a clinical breast examination they start looking for a female doctor...and it has to be a doctor that she and her family knows well.
There are breast clinics in major cities but very few to cater to the millions of Indian women. Moreover, not too many women walk into breast clinics unless they are continuously stimulated with breast cancer awareness programs and write-ups.
As we talk about breast cancer awareness, I thought of sharing my earlier article on the common myths about breast cancer. Hope you find it helpful.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Recorded for the Webinar
The recording for the webinar for the medical writing festival went well last night. Joann was logged in from Pennsylvania, Jonathan from California and I was logged in from Delhi. We recorded a promotional video for my webinar and also the presentation on Medical Writing in India.
The webinar goes LIVE on 28/9/11 at 7:30 PM Indian time. Jonathan and I shall be there to answer any questions that the participants might have. If you cannot watch it at that time or want to watch it again, you can watch the ON DEMAND REPLAY too.
I am hoping I can attend all the webinars. There are over a dozen of them lined up. There are different webinar packages to choose and there is the a la carta option too.
We will see you at the Medical Writing Festival. It's going to be a lot of fun.
The webinar goes LIVE on 28/9/11 at 7:30 PM Indian time. Jonathan and I shall be there to answer any questions that the participants might have. If you cannot watch it at that time or want to watch it again, you can watch the ON DEMAND REPLAY too.
I am hoping I can attend all the webinars. There are over a dozen of them lined up. There are different webinar packages to choose and there is the a la carta option too.
We will see you at the Medical Writing Festival. It's going to be a lot of fun.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Medical Writing Festival
I am looking forward to the Medical Writing Festival this Sep/Oct where I talk about Medical Writing in India.
This is a first of its kind festival for medical writers across the world. It is a series of 14 webinars with 11 speakers from different continents. People from 25 different countries have shown an interest in the Festival so far.
My webinar interview goes LIVE on 28/9/2011. And it's being recorded too for future REPLAYS on demand.
This is a first of its kind festival for medical writers across the world. It is a series of 14 webinars with 11 speakers from different continents. People from 25 different countries have shown an interest in the Festival so far.
My webinar interview goes LIVE on 28/9/2011. And it's being recorded too for future REPLAYS on demand.
The series runs from September 12 – October 7, 2011. There are over a dozen webinars on offer and some early bird discounts if one registers by September 7, 2011.
You can learn all about it at this website.
When you get there, make sure you enter your name and email to get more information.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Scientific Writing Talk at IIPH, Bhubaneswar
I have been speaking on cancer in different states including my home state, Odisha. But this was a new beginning for me...talking on medical writing to my home crowd.
It's good to know about the new Indian Institute of Public Health at Bhubaneswar. The institute offers PGD course in Public Health Management. IIPH, Bhubaneswar was organizing a workshop on 'Biostatistics and Research Methodology' this June.
I spoke on 'Writing a Scientific Manuscript and Getting in Published.' There was also an introduction to AIMWA and its membership drive. I look forward to more opportunities of spreading the word about Medical Writing in the eastern states of India. Currently, the hubs of medical writing in India are at Bengaluru, Mumbai, Gurgaon and Ahmedabad. I do not see much medical writing activity in the east.
It's good to know about the new Indian Institute of Public Health at Bhubaneswar. The institute offers PGD course in Public Health Management. IIPH, Bhubaneswar was organizing a workshop on 'Biostatistics and Research Methodology' this June.
I spoke on 'Writing a Scientific Manuscript and Getting in Published.' There was also an introduction to AIMWA and its membership drive. I look forward to more opportunities of spreading the word about Medical Writing in the eastern states of India. Currently, the hubs of medical writing in India are at Bengaluru, Mumbai, Gurgaon and Ahmedabad. I do not see much medical writing activity in the east.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
EduSat - Education Initiative by the Indian Govt.
Today's experience at Vigyan Prashar's office was rather different. I am now used to speaking on health related matters to gatherings of hundreds of people. My smallest audience till now was probably a group of seven ladies at a private gathering at a close friend's residence.
The topic was the same...'Breast Self Examination -Why? When? How?' What was different was the audience. I was not seeing my audience who, I am told, were viewing the program in their schools and offices across India. There were schools, colleges and offices in UP, Kashmir, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Arunachal Pradesh, etc from where students had logged in to attend the health tutorial. It was strange having to talk into a camera, with not much reaction on the face of the camera person. I was wondering if she really bothered what I was speaking about! But she was prompt to focus on my hands when I demonstrated the examination on the mannequin.
After the lecture, came the questions and it was a nice experience speaking to girls in schools from different states and clearing their queries. A new experience for me altogether.
EduSat, the world's first dedicated satellite for distance education, has made virtual classrooms a revolution in Indian education. Kerala was the first state to start virtual classes through EduSat in 2005. Today, as I spoke, a school in Kashmir was launching its virtual classes with my program.
Preventing Major Non-Communicable Diseases
International World Health Day... I was one of the judges for a poster making competition at a management institute in Ghaziabad.
There was overwhelming response from the students. There were over 90 students who had participated in the poster making competition. Some of the posters were very well designed. There were innovative ideas too.
Many of the students had listed out 10-20 harmful substances found in cigarette smoke. There were some posters that depicted the many ways in which tobacco acts on the different systems of the body. I was really impressed with the amount of homework the undergraduate students had done. Awareness is probably the first step towards abstinence from smoking.
After the competitions, there was a 2 hr lecture session on health awareness. Dr Agarwal introduced the term 'non-communicable diseases' and discussed the signs and symptoms of common non-communicable diseases (heart disease, diabetes, cancer etc). I spoke on the preventing measures common to these three diseases...tobacco control, eating right and exercising.
There was overwhelming response from the students. There were over 90 students who had participated in the poster making competition. Some of the posters were very well designed. There were innovative ideas too.
Many of the students had listed out 10-20 harmful substances found in cigarette smoke. There were some posters that depicted the many ways in which tobacco acts on the different systems of the body. I was really impressed with the amount of homework the undergraduate students had done. Awareness is probably the first step towards abstinence from smoking.
After the competitions, there was a 2 hr lecture session on health awareness. Dr Agarwal introduced the term 'non-communicable diseases' and discussed the signs and symptoms of common non-communicable diseases (heart disease, diabetes, cancer etc). I spoke on the preventing measures common to these three diseases...tobacco control, eating right and exercising.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Tobacco Awareness Workshop
Last afternoon, I was speaking to a group of students at ABES Engineering College, Ghaziabad on the topic "Tobacco & Your Health: Make an Informed Choice". It was a new experience for me to talk about tobacco and that too to a group of youngsters who had 'heard too much about tobacco' and did not want to receive any new gyaan. Our preworkshop assessment showed that though 93% of the students answered over 50% of the questions about tobacco correctly, they actually needed to know a lot more. Of the 214 respondents, only 8 had answered all the questions correctly. That's less than 4%.
My book titled "Things You Always Wanted to Know About Tobacco" is almost done. It's a book targeted at school goers. Hope it clicks well with them. There's already lots of information about tobacco all around. I am just trying to collate these together.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Experience - A challenge as well as an opportunity
Earlier this month, I was speaking at the 4th Annual Conference of the Indian Society for Clinical Research (ISCR). I was there as a last minute replacement for the scheduled speaker who could not make it. My topic for the day was 'Opportunities and Challenges in Medical Writing'.
Lack of experienced medical writers in India is a major challenge. However, young medical writers can even look at it as an opportunity.
Medical Writing is relatively new in India. Oh yes, some of the oldest writings in the field of medicine like the Sushrutasamhita and the Charakasamhita are from India. What I mean here, is that Medical Writing as a profession is a relatively new concept in India. There are very few medical writers in India who have a writing experience of over 5 years.
Data from an online survey I conducted in 2008, part of which was later presented at the 68th Annual Conference of AMWA in Louisville, KY the same year, showed that most medical writers in India had less than 5 years of experience. Nearly 90% of the respondents had less than 10 years of experience in the field.
This becomes a challenge for people deciding to outsource their writing to India. More often than not when I have had to hire writers for my work, I almost had to handhold them and teach them how to maintain uniform quality in their work. This is often more time consuming than doing the project on my own. However, with a little guidance some of the writers have learnt the skill really well. I am glad when I see their work.
And that's why I say that lack of experienced medical writers in India may be a challenge for service buyers. However, for service providers, it is an opportunity that they can cash on. If the young medical writers in this country work with sincerity and discipline, they can develop great skills. In this field, if you can provide the quality a client expects and stick to the deadlines, nobody is going to ask you about the training you have received or the number of years of experience you have in this field.
P.S. The complete report of the results of the first ever Survey of Medical Writers in India is available as a free bonus on ordering the ebook Becoming a Medical Writer (Indian Edition).
Lack of experienced medical writers in India is a major challenge. However, young medical writers can even look at it as an opportunity.
Medical Writing is relatively new in India. Oh yes, some of the oldest writings in the field of medicine like the Sushrutasamhita and the Charakasamhita are from India. What I mean here, is that Medical Writing as a profession is a relatively new concept in India. There are very few medical writers in India who have a writing experience of over 5 years.
Data from an online survey I conducted in 2008, part of which was later presented at the 68th Annual Conference of AMWA in Louisville, KY the same year, showed that most medical writers in India had less than 5 years of experience. Nearly 90% of the respondents had less than 10 years of experience in the field.This becomes a challenge for people deciding to outsource their writing to India. More often than not when I have had to hire writers for my work, I almost had to handhold them and teach them how to maintain uniform quality in their work. This is often more time consuming than doing the project on my own. However, with a little guidance some of the writers have learnt the skill really well. I am glad when I see their work.
And that's why I say that lack of experienced medical writers in India may be a challenge for service buyers. However, for service providers, it is an opportunity that they can cash on. If the young medical writers in this country work with sincerity and discipline, they can develop great skills. In this field, if you can provide the quality a client expects and stick to the deadlines, nobody is going to ask you about the training you have received or the number of years of experience you have in this field.
P.S. The complete report of the results of the first ever Survey of Medical Writers in India is available as a free bonus on ordering the ebook Becoming a Medical Writer (Indian Edition).
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