Healthy Lifestyle Centres: a service for screening noncommunicable diseases through primary health-care institutions in Sri Lanka
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Resumo
The Ministry of Health in Sri Lanka initiated the Healthy Lifestyle Centres (HLCs)in 2011, to address the lack of a structured noncommunicable disease (NCD)screening service through the lowest level of primary health-care institutions.The main service objective of the HLCs is to reduce the risk of NCDs of40–65 year olds by detecting risk factors early and improving access to specializedcare for those with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The screenedclients are managed at HLCs, based on the total-risk approach to assess their10-year CVD risk, using the World Health Organization/International Society ofHypertension risk-prediction chart. Those with a 10-year CVD risk of more than30% are referred to the specialized medical clinics, while others are managed withlifestyle modification and are requested to visit the HLC for rescreening, basedon the levels of CVD risk and intermediate risk factors. Identified challenges todate include: underutilization of services, especially by men; weak staff adherenceto protocols; lack of integration into pre-existing NCD-screening services;non-inclusion of screening for all the major NCDs; and human resources. Thegovernment plans to address these challenges as a priority, within the context ofthe National multisectoral action plan for the prevention and control of NCDs in SriLanka 2016–2020. Key interventions include: extended opening hours for HLCs,outreach activities in workplaces, and integration with “well woman clinics”. Costsrelated to actions have been realistically estimated. Some actions have alreadybeen initiated, while others are being designed with identified funds.Citação
DS Virginie Mallawaarachchi, Shiranee C Wickremasinghe, Lakshmi C Somatunga, Vithanage TSK Siriwardena & Nalika S Gunawardena. (2016). Healthy Lifestyle Centres: a service for screening noncommunicable diseases through primary health-care institutions in Sri Lanka. WHO South-East Asia Journal of Public Health, 5 (2), 89 - 95. World Health Organization. Regional Office for South-East Asia. https://iris.who.int/handle/10665/329642
Revista
WHO South-East Asia Journal of Public Health, 5 (2): 89 - 95ISSN
2224-3151 (Print)2304-5272 (Electronic)