International focus on poor access to pain relief in India – again.
An article published in January 2017 in the Journal of Global Oncology, titled End-of-Life Care and Opioid Use in India: Challenges and Opportunities brings the world’s attention again on the poor access to pain relief in India, despite the amendment of the NDPS Act in 2014. The authors, Aasems Jacob and Aju Mathew from the USA, make an astute analysis of the current situation and point out:
“Integration of palliative care as an academic discipline into the undergraduate medical curriculum and establishment of more postgraduate educational programs in palliative care would greatly improve provision of appropriate pain relief to thousands of patients suffering from cancer and other life-limiting illnesses”.
Indeed, education is the need of the hour.