A campaign was launched here on Saturday to raise awareness on transmission of hepatitis from a mother to her newborn child.
The Winning Over Mothers with Hepatitis B (WOMB), an initiative of the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS) in Delhi, was flagged off by Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar.
It seeks to raise awareness regarding ”vertically transmitted (mother-to-child) hepatitis among the women of reproductive age in Delhi,” the ILBS said in a statement. The occasion was the celebration of 25th Hepatitis Day by the ILBS and the Delhi government.
Delhi Health Secretary Amit Singla, Director, Family Welfare in Delhi government Vandana Bagga and filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra were also present at the event.
The event commenced with the sharing of the 25-year journey of the ‘Yellow Ribbon Campaign’. A book titled ’25 years of Hepatitis’ was released by Kumar.
Lt Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena, in a pre-recorded video message, congratulated ILBS and applauded the team for incessant efforts to make hepatitis a household topic, through the yellow ribbon campaign.
He affirmed that the Delhi government shall stand committed to the elimination of Hepatitis B and C and would welcome any additional policy changes and financial support required by the ILBS to make the programme a success.
Kumar said the Delhi government would provide all possible assistance for this, and suggested that Delhi should strive to become the national health centre and a role model for all tertiary medical services across India.
