In collaboration with Maharashtra University of Health Sciences, the screening is a part of its capacity advancement programme in India
Merck, a leading company for products in the pharma, chemical and life-science sectors, rolled out its diabetes awareness and prevention campaign in collaboration with Maharashtra University of Health Sciences in order to improve diabetes awareness and community health level in India.
On the occasion of World Diabetes Day, Merck supported diabetes awareness at 15 medical colleges in Maharashtra, aiming to screen and educate more than 15,000 community members across Maharashtra state. Dubbed ‘Get Informed- Get Active- Get Healthier’, the campaign aimed to reverse this worrying trend by preventing or delaying the development of diabetes in the Indian population.
Rasha Kelej, Vice President, Head of Global Business Responsibility and Market Development of Merck Serono emphasised, “We are pleased to engage with DMER and Maharashtra University as we are celebrating the World Diabetes Day focusing on ‘Healthy Living and Diabetes’ in order to improve access to better diabetes care as part of our commitment to the social and economic development of India. Supporting diabetes education and diabetes community outreach programmes of the University will contribute significantly to improving awareness, early diagnosis and prevention of the disease across India.”
Dr Stefan Oschmann, Member of the Executive Board of Merck and CEO Pharma said, “Merck is pleased to collaborate with Maharashtra University of Health Sciences and Directorate of Medical Education & Research as part of our commitment to building healthcare capacity and providing sustainable access to high-quality health solutions and safe medicine in India.”
Merck provided the necessary support to conduct diabetes free screening and education to each medical college in Maharashtra University of Health Sciences during the week of the WDD to raise awareness about diabetes and empower community members on how to better manage and prevent it.
Ali Sleiman, General Manager of Merck Serono India added, “We hope to maintain a long-standing relationship with Maharashtra University and DMER to improve the standard of healthcare and research capacity in order to tackle diabetes and non–communicable diseases as a part of Merck Capacity Advancement Program (CAP).”
Merck Diabetes Capacity Advancement Program (CAP) is a five year programme which was kicked off in India recently and has been implemented successfully in seven sub-Saharan countries including Kenya, Uganda, Namibia Angola, Ghana, Tanzania and Mozambique and will further expand to other Sub-Saharan and Asian countries targeting 12000 medical students by 2018.