Indian College of Obstetrics & Gynaecologists and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare launch National Nutritional Consensus programme

GSK also pledges to support ‘Save the Girl Child’ empowering people to prevent, diagnose & treat nutritional deficiencies in women

Chennai,21 January 2015: Indian College of Obstetrics & Gynaecologists (ICOG) and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Limited (GSK) strengthened their partnership with thelaunchof theNational Nutritional Consensus programme, today in Chennai. As part of IGNITE (Icog Glaxo JoiNt Initiative Towards Educational Excellence) programme that was launched last year, thisinitiativeenables gynaecologist and obstetricians to update them with the latest knowledge and solutions in the field of gynaecology & obstetrics.Experts from the FOGSI-ICOG and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), India liaison group will be involved in drafting a National consensus which will be reviewed by a steering committee consisting of prominent KOLs and subject matter experts from the fraternity.This initiative will play an instrumental role in sensitising clinicians and the larger community.

The guidelines once formulated and accredited by FOGSI will be effectively communicated to the obstetrics & gynaecologist community through host of educational programmes.The consensus panel will consist of members of FIGO(The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics), FOGSI(The Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India), ICOG (The Indian College of Obstetrics and Gynecology)RCOG(Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists)India liaison group, under the leadership of President FOGSI Dr. Prakash Trivedi and Chairman ICOG Dr. Dilip Dutta, researchers, professors from medical colleges, young upcoming fellows, and faculty who have pledged their time and interest for this initiative.

Speaking about this initiativeDr. Jaideep Malhotra (ICOG Secretary) said,“This is a momentous occasion for us. We see this collaboration playing a pivotal role in promoting education, training and spread of knowledge in the field of Obstetrics and Gynecology. There is a crucial need to help raise the standards of education and practice in our country. This is where GSK Consumer Healthcare’s expertise and experience in the area of nutrition will be most valuable. We thank GSK for their support in fostering this partnership.”

Low nutritional status of women is considered to be one of the primary determinants of under nutrition across the life cycle. Nutritional anaemia is a major health problem and is primarily due to iron deficiency. Late introduction of appropriate complementary foods, poor environmental sanitation, unsafe drinking water and inadequate personal hygiene also lead to nutrition deficiencies in India. Therefore, there is a need to educate mothers to improve the health conditions of the community and the country, at large.

Delighted about this collaborationPrashant Pandey, Marketing Head, GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare India, said, “We are committed to serve the community and dedicated towards bringing superior sciencethat enables people to do more, feel better and live longer.This association with ICOG reiterates our commitment to achieve educational excellence and help the medical fraternity in addressing issues in the areas of nutrition, especially amongst the Indian women. We are also honoured to pledge support to ‘Save the Girl Child’ initiative as we firmly believe that a healthy girl child can become a healthy mother; this will ultimately lead to a healthier India.”

IGNITE programme which was launched last year at the AICOG 2014, Patna has successfully completed 100 CMEs across 65 locations in India where 3000 doctors participated. The continued medical educations (CMEs) were conducted in two Phases, Phase 1 & Phase 2. Phase 1 was focused on Reproductive Endocrinology and Phase 2 was on Pre & Post Conception Care. Delighted about this initiative Dr. Jaideep Malhotra, Secretary-ICOG is grateful to all the National Coordinators, Principal Faculties,Regional Faculties and FOGSI Societies involved in the successful execution of IGNITE.

About GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Ltd

GSK Consumer Healthcare is a subsidiary of GlaxoSmithKline plc. of U.K, a global science based healthcare company. GSK Consumer Healthcare has continually benefited from the technical and marketing inputs that have been available as a consequence of this association. GSK Consumer Healthcare is the largest player in the health food drinks industry. The Company with its manufacturing plants located in Nabha, Rajahmundry and Sonepat has a total workforce of about 3502 people.

GSK Consumer Healthcare has a strong marketing and distribution network in India comprising over 700 distributors and a direct coverage of over 8 lakh retail outlets. Its flagship product, Horlicks, is a widely regarded and highly respected brand for over 100 years. GSK also manufactures and markets Boost, Viva and Maltova and in additional markets. GSK also distributes a number of products in diverse categories, which include prominent names such as Eno, Crocin and Iodex as well as products from the global portfolio like Parodontax and Sensodyne.

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