VIJAYAWADA, April 16: State Minister for Medical and Health Sri Satyakumar Yadav on Thursday called upon government medical colleges to work towards securing rankings under the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), asserting that such recognition would lend them a distinct identity and enhance their standing in the academic world.

The Minister was speaking on the occasion of the inauguration of the Disease Monitoring and Decision Making Centre (DMDMC) at the NTR University of Health Sciences here, a facility being set up at a cost of Rs. 6 crore. He urged faculty and administrators to strive for the publication of research papers by State medical professionals in internationally reputed journals such as The Lancet.

Expressing concern over the lack of visible progress on the ground, the Minister noted that despite administrative approval orders having been issued for the development of teaching hospitals at an outlay of nearly Rs. 4,000 crore, tangible action remained elusive. He called upon hospital superintendents and college principals to act in a coordinated manner and take necessary steps without further delay. He also urged them to systematically harness the support being offered by alumni who are coming forward to contribute to the development of their alma mater. He stressed the need for continuous efforts to implement the 30-point agenda announced by the Medical and Health Department.

Suicides in Medical Colleges Must Be Prevented

State Medical and Health Department Principal Secretary Saurabh Gaur, addressing the gathering, urged principals of medical colleges to ensure that no student deaths by suicide occur on their campuses. Noting that there are approximately 7,000 faculty members across government and private medical colleges combined, he called upon each of them to closely observe and counsel at least 10 to 20 students, monitoring their behaviour and mental well-being. He informed that renowned psychiatrist Dr. Aparna is conducting special training programmes specifically targeting first-year MBBS students who are under stress.

The DMDMC will function under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP) within the purview of the Director of Public Health. The advanced technology at the centre will enable early detection of disease outbreaks at the district, mandal, and village levels, facilitating timely preventive action. The centre is also to be linked with the Advanced Warning Advisory for Resilient Ecosystem (AWARE) system, officials said.

The NTR Health University has already disbursed Rs. 10 lakh each to government medical colleges in Kurnool, Tirupati, and Visakhapatnam for the development of sports grounds to encourage student participation in athletics.

The university was also asked to initiate post-doctoral fellowship courses in the field of fertility. University Vice-Chancellor Dr. Chandrashekhar, Registrar Sai Sudhir, and Dr. Lakshmi Suryaprabha announced that new courses including BSc in Family Emergency Medicine and Forensic Nursing are to be introduced in medical colleges. Plans are also afoot to launch Biophysics courses in collaboration with IIT Chennai and IIT New Delhi. They requested that regulatory hurdles, including FCRA-related restrictions on receiving funds from abroad, be eased to facilitate construction and development work at teaching hospitals in Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, and other centres.

Cheques Presented to Andhra and Kakinada Medical Colleges

Minister Satyakumar presented cheques of Rs. 10 lakh each to the principals of Andhra Medical College and Kakinada Medical College, Dr. Sandhyarani and Dr. Vishnuvardhan respectively, for undertaking sports infrastructure development on their campuses.

The Minister also inaugurated a 100 KW rooftop solar panel installation atop the NTR Health University building, set up under the Corporate Social Responsibility initiative of Canara Bank.

AMARAVATI, April 14: A landmark research initiative to uncover the causes of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the Uddanam region of Srikakulam district has gathered momentum, with a dedicated team now collecting blood and urine samples from local residents and deploying biomarker testing — a method being used in the area for the first time — to detect early signs of renal deterioration.

The research team briefed State Health Minister Satyakumar Yadav on the progress at a review meeting here on Monday.

A specialised laboratory, equipped with centrifuges, deep freezers, sample storage systems, analytical instruments, and field sampling kits, has been set up at King George Hospital (KGH) in Visakhapatnam at a cost of approximately ₹80 lakh. Samples collected from residents are first stored at a kidney research centre in Palasa before being transferred to the KGH facility under controlled conditions.

So far, blood and urine samples have been collected from around 1,500 residents through a special multi-disciplinary team. A structured questionnaire is also being administered to gather information on family medical history and other epidemiological factors.

Early detection through biomarkers

The principal investigators — Dr. G. Prasad, Professor of Nephrology at Andhra Medical College, and his mentor, senior nephrologist Professor Tatapudi Raviraju — said that biomarker testing of urine samples would make it possible to identify individuals likely to develop kidney disease within three to four years, at a micro level, well before clinical symptoms manifest.

"Mass biomarker screening of this nature for CKD patients is being undertaken for the first time," Dr. Raviraju said. The results, he added, would enable patients to take precautionary measures and allow clinicians to initiate early intervention, thereby preventing deterioration of kidney function. Genetic testing using RNA sequencing (RNAseq) will also form part of the research.

ICMR grant, research background

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), under its Department of Health Research, approved a grant of ₹6.2 crore in November last year for a three-year study into the high prevalence of CKD in Uddanam. The approval followed sustained efforts by Health Minister Satyakumar Yadav to secure central support for the investigation.

The research was originally initiated during the previous Telugu Desam Party government (2014–19), when the George Institute for Global Health, Australia, was engaged as the research partner. However, the initiative was subsequently suspended during the YSRCP administration. The present alliance government revived the effort following its return to power.

The research team assured the Minister that the study is progressing according to a defined timeline and is expected to be completed within the stipulated three-year period.

Uddanam, a coastal belt spanning several mandals in Srikakulam district, has for decades reported disproportionately high rates of kidney failure, often affecting individuals in their productive years. The cause of the disease cluster has remained poorly understood, with hypotheses ranging from contaminated groundwater to pesticide exposure.