Priority topics

1.       Health Care Delivery System

2.       Communicable Diseases

3.       Non Communicable Diseases

4.       Neonatal and Child Health

5.       Reproductive Health

6.       Mental Health and Substance Abuse

7.       Injuries, Accidents and Violence

8.       Nutrition and Food Safety

9.       Environmental and Occupational Health

10.    Traditional Medicine

11.    Urban Health

12.    Geriatric Health

13.    Miscellaneous

Research related to following aspects in the priority areas wherever applicable

—  Magnitude of the problem, prevalence, incidence, risk factors: immune status, race and genetics

—  Burden of Diseases (DALY, QALY)

—  Etiology: agents risk factors and environmental  factors

—  Course: morbidity, disability, mortality, survival

—  Surveillance and early diagnosis

—  Management of control programme: diagnosis, outbreak and carrier management, transmission methods, case management and treatment, vector, pathogenesis, resistance to drugs

—  Socioeconomic and cultural factors

—  Health promotion and education, behavior change and rehabilitation

·         Ethics: Professional, medical and research ethics

·         High altitude sickness: acute mountain sickness, high altitude pulmonary and cerebral edema

Vulnerable Populations: Sex workers, drug users, migrant workers etc.

1.       Health Care Delivery System

·         Free health care services: coverage, efficacy, equity and justice, impact evaluation, evaluation of free drug policy

·         Human resources for health: production, recruitment, deployment, retention, training, attrition etc Operational research in HRM

·         Drugs/vaccines/technology: Quality, access, procurement, rational use, pharmacovigilance, AE/SAE, Drug resistance, drug storage & safety, prescription assessment, inventory management, Regulation of drug production and supply  including traditional medicine

·         Health sector information system:  HMIS, LMIS, FMIS, DMIS, RMIS, Information gaps in health system

·         Health Economics: NHA (DHA), Sub-national accounting e.g. MNCH, HIV/AIDS, health care financing, health insurance, health care financing, Out of pocket expenditures, demand based financing, cost sharing, PP mix, public sector expenditure, Health cooperatives, Socio economic impact of diseases and – Financing sustainability

·         Quality and decentralization: Quality of services (assessment), quality of care, quality control (Hospitals and laboratories), MDG need assessment, client satisfaction , quality assurance

·         Other issues in Health care delivery system

o    Infrastructure and logistics

o    Barriers to utilization of peripheral Health Facilities, Community empowerment for active participation in health delivery issues at local level, Right to health issues, Health Seeking Behavior, Socio cultural determinants

o    Health systems research: policy, programs and their evaluation

o    Socio behavioral and qualitative studies, evaluation (program and training),

o    Migrant population: Health problems and BoD

o    Operational research – research within the program

o    Hospital management: relevance, quality, equity, effectiveness, feasibility

o    Intersectoral coordination (health and non health sectors)

o    Privatization and monitoring private sectors/NGOs

o    Coverage, Equity and Cost effective implementation of basic services

o    Records keeping – including birth and death register, hospital statistics

o    Health policy and policy for health

o    Issues of Polio and other Immunization Preventable Diseases (IPDs)

2.       Communicable/Infectious Diseases

·         Tropical diseases

o    Kalazar, Malaria,  Different dimensions of TB (BoD, Socio economic burden, open border issue, MDR, XDR), TB/HIV co infection

·         Disease pattern, Pathogen understanding, Biomedical research

·         Emerging infections: dengue, brucellosis, avian influenza

·         Nosocomial Infection/Hospital acquired Infection

·         Diarrheal diseases, Cholera

·         ARI, Pneumonia, Influenza, Measles, Rubella

·         Skin diseases

·         HIV/AIDS/STI

·         Zoonotic diseases

·         Enteric fever, hepatitis

·         Leprosy and Disability

·         Acute encephalitis syndrome, Meningitis

3.       Non-Communicable Diseases

·         Diabetes

·         Cancer

·         Cerebro vascular diseases

·         Cardiovascular diseases

·         Chronic respiratory diseases,

·         Other Conditions

o    Renal diseases

o    Hearing and Visual Disability

o    Connective tissue, immunological disorders, osteoporosis

4.       Neonatal and Child Health

·         Diarrheal diseases, Enteric Fever

·         Neonatal Health

·         Childhood Asthma

·         Child survival and development: mortality, morbidity, neonatal and child health programmes

·         New born care problem – hypothermia, LBW, sepsis, prematurity, birth asphyxia

·         Congenital anomalies/diseases

·         Nutritional status and trends

·         Immunization coverage

·         Hemato oncological problem

·         Childhood mental health problem

·         Referral and transport of sick neonates and children

·         Development and provision of neonatal and pediatric high and intensive care in district hospitals

5.       Reproductive Health

·         Safe motherhood program, effectiveness and utilization

·         Maternal health – mortality, morbidity, health seeking behavior

·         Pregnancy and delivery – place of delivery, safe delivery incentive program, availability, accessibility and utilization of ante natal, intra natal and post natal care and services

·         FP services: Unmet needs for contraception and services, Contraceptive Prevalence Rate, Emergency Contraception

·         Unwanted pregnancy, Abortion

·         Adolescent health including reproductive health: sexuality,  early marriages and pregnancy

6.       Mental Health and Substance Abuse

·         National psychiatry morbidity survey

·         Psycho-epidemiology

·         Alcohol, tobacco and substance abuse

·         Mental health service system

·         Community mental health program

·         Stress and anxiety

·         Post traumatic stress disorders

·         Shock and depression

·         Mental Health Legislation and policy

·         Suicides

7.       Injuries, Accidents & Violence

·         RTAs, Burns, Trauma and Injuries,

·         Suicide, Poisoning (such as Mushroom)

·         Disaster (natural and manmade)

         8. Nutrition and Food safety

·         Nutritional disorders: Malnutrition (Under nutrition, Overweight & Obesity)

·         Micronutrient deficiency disorders

·         Community programmes for nutrition, different approaches to improve nutrition

·         Food security and safety

·         Food adulteration, food poisoning

·         Nutrition education and evaluation

·         Management of different nutritional disorders

·         Myths and Misconceptions 

          9.  Environment and Occupational Health

·         Sanitation (WASH), Use of sanitary latrine

·         Air pollution: outdoor (vulnerable population such as traffic police), indoor

·         Climate change and health

·         Occupational health and safety: child labour, People in uniforms, hazardous industries and occupation, workplace safety, laboratory and radiological staffs

·         Domestic and industrial waste: solid or liquid waste management, Industrial Pollution

·         Hospital Safety  and Health facility waste management

·         Lead, Mercury and other heavy metal poisoning, childhood poisoning

·         Pesticides & health

·         Emerging diseases relating to climate change

·         Quality of water: Arsenicosis, Water pollution

·         Burden of diseases of environmental origin

         10. Traditional medicine

·         Traditional Practices

·         Ayurvedic medicine/ Regulations of drug production and supply

·         Medicinal plants

·         Other systems of medicine: Homeopathy, Naturopathy, Unani, Amchi, Acupuncture (Utilization patterns, effectiveness studies)

·         Intellectual property rights

·         Resource mapping

·         Trends of use of various Traditional Complementary and Alternative Medical services

·         Herbal treatment for diseases like HIV/AIDS and cancer

         11. Urban health

·         Institutional arrangement and service delivery system

         12.    Geriatric health

·         Social neglect, social protection and rehabilitation

·         Health services for geriatric population

·         Hypothermia, dementia

·         Osteoporosis (Timely screening and prevention)

         13.    Miscellaneous

·         Epidemics: Surveillance, Outbreak Investigation, Screening, surveillance of AEFI, Sentinel surveillance (through NPHL)

·         School Health: Physical and psychological Health, adolescent health, immunization

·         Ethics: Professional, medical and research ethics

·         High altitude sickness: acute mountain sickness, high altitude pulmonary and cerebral edema

·         Vulnerable Populations: Sex workers, drug users, migrant workers etc.