Indonesia’s Asia Calling Reports on Palliative Care
Journalist Gayatri Parameswaran reports for Asia Calling, “a one-hour weekly current affairs radio program by award-winning Indonesian radio news agency KBR68H, which covers a wide range of stories that highlight the political, economic, social and cultural diversity of the region.”
Dying A Painless Death – LISTEN:
Thousands of patients in India experience unnecessary pain because access to morphine is restricted.
Morphine, which comes from opium, is one of the most effective painkillers.
India grows opium poppies, and produces opium for the international pharmaceutical market.
But terminally ill patients in more than half the country are not getting it. The strict government regulations were created out of fears of illicit drug use and addiction.
But in recent years Kerala in the south of the country has become to the fist state to relax the rules and has started using morphine for patients who are dying.
Despite having less than three per cent of the country’s population, it hosts 2/3rds of the country’s palliative care centres.
Gayatri Parameswaran travelled to find out more.
Another version of this interview will air on Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW) soon, we’ll post a link when it’s published.
Comments are closed.
