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TO FOREIGN, AND HEALTH EDITORS:
10,000 Women's Perspectives on NCDs - A New Global Survey from Arogya
World
NEW YORK, March 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Arogya World, with partner
organizations from multiple sectors, announced today, in advance of
International Women's Day, the start of a global quantitative survey
to gather the perspectives of 10,000 women in 10 countries on
Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs). Arogya World and its partners
Novartis, Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, American Cancer
Society, UNICEF, Population Services International, Abt SRBI and Jana,
have come together to begin work on a Commitment to Action they made
at the 2013 Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting. This
important public health collaborative effort aims to highlight the
impact of NCDs on women and their families, and to use women's voices
to move governments to action.
"NCDs are the number one cause of death amongst women, yet their
concerns and specific needs are not being addressed by the global
community," said Nalini Saligram, Ph.D., Founder & CEO, Arogya World.
"With this survey we commit to providing the data that will compel
decision-makers to address NCDs and help women and children lead
healthier lives."
"We see the increase of NCDs, especially in developing countries, as a
major global health problem. That's why Novartis is proud to
collaborate with Arogya World on their 10,000 Women survey, drawing
attention to the impact of NCDs on women's lives around the world,"
said Jurgen Brokatzky-Geiger, Global Head, Corporate Responsibility
for Novartis.
"It is well known that NCDs are largely preventable. But that is not
being effectively translated into action at the country level. We are
eager to use this survey's findings about women's exposure to NCD risk
factors, and their perceptions about the barriers to treatment and
care, to get policymakers to invest in women-centered NCD programs,"
said Kenneth Thorpe, Ph.D., Chairman, Partnership to Fight Chronic
Disease.
"Cancer and other NCDs have a profound impact on women. We believe
this survey is important as it can highlight the strong link between
women and NCDs, influence the post-2015 Development agenda and ensure
that women continue to be projected as leaders of their own health and
that of their families," said Sally Cowal, Senior Vice President
Global Programs, American Cancer Society, and former head of the
Taskforce on Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and Women's Health.
Innovative mobile and Web technologies are used to survey 1,000 women
18-40 years old, in Afghanistan, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Kenya,
Mexico, Russia, South Africa, UK, and US- to reach a total of 10,000
women. These are a mix of developing, low-income and developed
countries from different regions of the world. In addition, some
women will be videotaped in each country to gather their personal
stories of how they are coping with and fighting NCDs. The
quantitative survey report and the accompanying videos will be
released later this year.
"If we are serious about leaving the world a healthier place for our
children, we must act now to prevent and control NCDs," said Kerida
McDonald, Ph.D., Senior Advisor, Communication for Development,
UNICEF. "Data help to make change by identifying needs and supporting
advocacy. This survey will help to provide some of the evidence
needed to make change regarding NCDs."
"To PSI, women are the cornerstone of global health and development,"
said PSI's Vice President of Sexual and Reproductive Health and TB,
Krishna Jafa. "Ensuring they have access to NCD prevention, treatment
and care programs helps improve the health of families and
communities."
The survey is currently in implementation.
"We are eager to partner on this important initiative and bring to
this project our expertise in survey design and global health
surveys," said Ken Gaalswyk, Vice President of International Research
at Abt SRBI, a key implementation partner.
"Together, the voices of 10,000 women can change the world," said
Nathan Eagle, CEO of Jana. "Our mobile technology platform will enable
these voices to be heard, and further the goal of putting NCDs on the
action list of policy makers worldwide."
NCDs - which include heart disease, diabetes, cancer and chronic lung
diseases (including asthma and COPD) - are among the greatest health
and development challenges of the century. Impacting both developed
and developing countries, NCDs cause 2 out of 3 deaths globally, and
are the number one killer of women. Women and girls are
disproportionately impacted by these diseases since they are often
most likely to miss school or work to care for family members who fall
ill.
According to the World Health Organization, 80% of heart disease, 80%
diabetes and 40% cancers are preventable through avoiding tobacco,
increasing physical activity and eating healthy foods. In many
countries, however, women are believed to be disadvantaged with regard
to prevention due to illiteracy, and social and cultural barriers.
About Arogya World Arogya World (www.arogyaworld.org) is a global
health non-profit organization, committed to changing the course of
chronic disease, one community at a time. Arogya means 'good health'
in Sanskrit and denotes living life without disease. The organization
believes deeply in prevention, advocates for NCD prevention through
lifestyle changes globally, and in India, implements programs for
diabetes prevention through lifestyle change.
About the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Established in 2005 by
President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an
initiative of Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation, convenes
global leaders to create and implement innovative solutions to the
world's most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought
together more than 150 heads of state, 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and
hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major
philanthropists, and members of the media. To date, members of the CGI
community have made more than 2,800 Commitments to Action, which are
already improving the lives of more than 430 million people in over
180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments
will be valued at $103 billion.
CGI also convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative
solutions to economic recovery in the United States, and CGI
University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate
students to address pressing challenges in their community or around
the world, and, this year, CGI Latin America, which will bring
together Latin American leaders to identify, harness, and strengthen
ways to improve the livelihoods of people in Latin America and around
the world. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and
follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook
at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.
SOURCE Arogya World
-0- 03/06/2014
/CONTACT: Nalini Saligram, 610-952-6427, nalini@arogyaworld.org
/Web Site: http://www.arogyaworld.org
CO: Arogya World
ST: New York
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