INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN MEDICAL STATISTICS (ICMR)


 

THE INSTITUTE

In 1964 a Statistical Unit was created at the ICMR Head Quarters with a strength of five persons, discharged form ICMR adhoc study on Morbidity & Mortality in Delhi state. In 1969 this unit was upgraded into Division of Biostatistics. In 1978 this Division was further upgraded into an independent Institute by Dr. C. Gopalan, then Director General, ICMR with renewed aims and objectives. The Institute is located in a separate building in the campus of ICMR Headquarters, New Delhi. ICMR is located in the campus of All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi

As per the recommendations of the Advisory Committee setup under the Chairmanship of International fame, Dr.C.R. Rao, four Divisions were created. Major emphasis of activities of the Institute is on goal-oriented statistical research in important areas like the development of a health information system, developing suitable procedures for evaluation of national health programmes and epidemiology of various diseases of national importance. The Institute also organises training programmes for biomedical research for medical scientists as well as statisticians, apart from providing biostatistical services. Since 1991, the Institute has been undertaking sponsored national projects for assessment and evaluation of health & nutrition Programmes of Government of India. For such jobs the Institute is well equipped with a Field Unit and Computer Center. Researchers (MD/ Ph.D students & senior scientists) from Hospitals and Medical Colleges are provided free guidance and consultancy for the study design, data analysis and towards interpretation of their results. The Institute is a recognised center of few Universities for pursuing research in Biostatistics methods and epidemiology.

OBJECTIVES

To help coordinate and standardize the collection of medical health statistics in the country. To promote and undertake research in statistical techniques and methodology in the field of health, medicine, epidemiology and other allied subjects. To provide statistical service and assistance to Centre, State and local bodies in handling problems in health and medicine. To exercise surveillance to ensure the statistical adequacy and validity in the Council's programme. To conduct training in applied statistics for both statisticians, medical researchers/ personnel.

PROJECTS 1970-84:

(A)ICMR COLLABORATIVE STUDIES:

  (1) Prevalence of Blindness.
  (2) Epidemiological study on Epilepsy in India.
  (3) Prevalence of Diabetes Mellitus.
  (4) Epidemiological study on Oral Cancer, Breast & Cervical Cancer.
  (5) Noise Survey, Rubella Infection & Poliomyelitis Survey.
  (6) Prevalence of Rheumatic Heart Disease in school Children.
  (7) Prevalence of Peptic Ulcer.
  (8) Clinical Chemistry Norms.
  (9) Infant Growth Norms.
 (10) Hearing Impairments.
 (11) Research in Health Survey Techniques.
 (12) Oesphageal Cancer.
 (13) Diabetes Mellitus (1979).
 (14) Stroke & Ischaemic Heart Disease in Young Subjects in India.
 (15) Epidemiological Study on Spontaneous Subarachonoid Harmorrhage in India.
 (16) Investigation into factors that determine the health Status of a Community.
(B) ICMR - WHO COLLABORATIVE STUDIES :
 (17) TB Prevention Trials - Madras.
 (18) Short term sequelae after Induced Abortion.
 (19) Oral Contraceptive and IUCD Testing. 
(C) OTHER MAJOR STUDIES :
 (20) Longitudinal Study on Growth and Development of Children-Agra.
 (21) Growth Study on  Low  Birth  Weight  Babies, Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi.
 (22) Sexual Growth   of  Children  between 9-18 Years of Age.
 (23) Endocrinal and Physical Growth of Children between 9-18 Years of Age-Jabalpur.
 (24) Congenital  Abnormalities  in  New  Borns.
 (25) Perinatal Mortality of Infants.
 (26) Research Techniques for Obtaining Statistics on Hospital Facilities and Activities.
 (27) Studies on Hospital Morbidity and Mortality.
 (28) Prevalence of Byssionosis in Textile Workers of Bombay.
 (29) Socio-Economic Survey of Indian Medical Students with reference to Motivation in the
      choice of Medicine as a  Career in India.
 (30) Economic Impact of N.M.E.P.
 (31) Dental Health of school Children in  Lucknow.
 (32) Register of Medical Specialists.
 (33) Community Health Study in Neighbourhood Communities.
 (34) Establishment of Integrated Research Information System  (DBMS)-ICMR Hq. New  Delhi.
1986-98( At IRMS, New Delhi):
 
 (35) Sero Surveillance of AIDS - HIV Infection - ICMR.
 (36) ICMR Collaborative study on Poliomyelitis a padiatrics disability study-  
      NCD Division ICMR.
 (37) Survival Patterns in Contrasting Populations of Young and Middle Ages.- Dy.Director 
      Dr. N.R.Rao, IRMS, New Delhi.
 (38) Estimation of Extent of Adoption of Family Planning  and Immunisation Status of Children 
      in Paharganj Area  of Delhi-Director, IRMS, New Delhi.
 (39) Study on Cervical Smear in various types of Family Planning  Users and Non-Users
       - Director, IRMS, ND.
 (40) Pay Roll for IRMS Personnel.
 (41) Development of Data Bank  on secondary data (published papers) on Growth and Physical
      Development of Indian Children.
 (42)  Re-analysis  of ICMR Collaborative  study  on  diabetes mellitus (1972-75) -  
      Prof. M.M.S. Ahuja, AIIMS, New  Delhi.
 (43) Family Planning Practices in three PHCs.-Director I.R.R., Bombay.   
 (44) Follow-up Data Analysis of Collaborative Study on Poliomyletis- a Padiatrics Disability 
      Study.
 (45) Sampling Plan  For Relationship  Between Two Variables, IRMS, New Delhi.
 (46) A Pilot Study On Distribution Of Glucose Tolerance And Cardio-vascular Morbidity
      In Rural Population, Residing At High Altitude  Of Himalays -ICMR; 
      Prof. M.M.S.  Ahuja, AIIMS (1990).   
 (47) Development  Of Model for Relationship Between  Incidence And Prevalence (1991).
 (48) Methodological investigation on surveys of immunisation coverage - Ministry of Health and              
      Family Welfare/IRMS, New Delhi sponsored by USAID(1991).
 
 (49) National Survey of 90 Districts under Social Safety Net Scheme, sponsored by Ministry of
      Health, New Delhi (1993)
 (50) Causes of Infant Mortality Survey in Orissa State (India) Sponsored by UNICEF(1993).
 (51) National Family Health Survey(I), Sponsored by International Institute of Population Studies
      ( Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare), Bombay(1994).
 (52) Survey of Rural Family Welfare Centres, Sponsored by Ministry Of Health, 
      New Delhi(1994).
 (53) State Nutrition Profile, Sponsored by National  Nutrition Board, Department of Woman 
      & Child Development,  Ministry of Human Resources, New Delhi. 
 (54) Study of Communicable Diseases Among Slum Dwellers in Delhi, Sponsored by ICMR, 
      New Delhi.
1988-93: SPONSORED FIELDS STUDIES
 
 (55) A study on "Social Safety Net Survey in 90 Demographic Districts",
      sponsored by Ministry of Health.
 (56) A study on "Causes of Infant Mortality in Orissa", sponsored by Ministry of Health.
 (57) A study on "Five Percent Post Survey Check of National Family  Health, Survey -1993" 
      sponsored by IIPS, Bombay.
 (58) A study on "Rural Family Welfare Centres(RFWC)", sponsored by 
      Ministry of Family Planning.
 (59) A study on "Post Partam Centres(PPC)",  sponsored Ministry of  Family
      Planning, New Delhi.
 (60) A study on "State Nutrition Profile",sponsored by Ministry Nutrition Board of India. 
1997-99:
 (61) Development of Intranet, Internet & Email Facilities at IRMS.
 (62) A study on "Quality Of Life Of  Cardiac Surgery Patients", IRMS project.
 (63) Coverage Evaluation Programme, Sponsored by Ministry of Health.
 (64) Evaluation of  Leprosy Vaccine in Kanpur, sponsored project.
 (65) National Monitoring Bureau (Northern Region)- sponsored by N.I.N, Hyderabad.
 
2000-todate:
 
 (66) Uses and Acceptability of Indian System of Medicine, Sponsored by Ministry of Health.
 (67) Awarness of HIV & AIDS among Truck Drivers on Delhi and Bombay Highway. 
 (68) Baseline Survey in Trans Yamuna Areas for Preparation of Healthy City.
Training: Biomedical Statistics

The Institute organises need based training courses in Biostatistics and Electronic Data Processing for the students of the following Government Institutions.

Student from Department of Statistics, Kurukshetra University.

Director Geneneral of Health Services for their annual Medical Records Officer's and Medical records Technician's courses at Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi.

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur College of Nursing, New Delhi.

Goals for Health and family Welfare Programmes


-----------------------------------------------------------------------
sl.                           Goals
No.       Indicator      Current level       1985      1990      2000
_______________________________________________________________________
1         2                   3              4         5         6    
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

 1. Infant mortality rate Rural 136 (1978)    122
                         Urban  70  (1978)     60
                          Total 125 (1978)    106       87     below 60
 
     Perinatal mortality         67 (1976)                        30-35

 2. Crude death rate      Around 14            12      10.4         9.0

 3. Pre-school child
   (1-5yrs.) mortality    24(1976-77)      20-24      15-20          10

 4. Maternal mortality rate  4-5(1976)        3-4       2-3     below 2

 5. Life expectancy
   of birth (yrs.)       male 52.6 (1976-81) 55.1      57.6          64

 6. Babies with birth weight
   below 2500 gms.(percentage)     30        25        18            10

 7. Crude birth rate   Around      35        31        27            21

 8. Effective couple protection
  (percentage)              23.6(March,82) 37.0        42            60

 9. Net Reproduction Rate(NRR) 1.48(1981)   1.13        1.17         1.0

10. Growth rate (annual)     2.24(1971-81)  1.90        1.66         1.2

11. Family size               4.4(1975)      3.8                     2.3

12. pregnant mothers receiving
    ante-natal care(%)        40-50        50-60       60-75         100

13. Deliveries by trained birth
    attendants(%)             30-35           50          80         100

14. Immunisations status (% coverage)
   TT (for Pregnant women)      20            60         100         100

   TT (for school children)
               10years                        40         100         100

               16years          20            40         100         100

   DPT(children below 3 years)  25            70          85          85

   Polio (infants)               5            50          70          85

   BCG (infants)                65            70          80          85

   DT(new school entrants(5-6yr)20            80          85          85

   Typhoid (new school entrants
   5-6years)                     2            70          85          85

15. Leprosy---percentage of 
    disease arrested cases out
    of those detected           20            40          60          80

16. TB---percentage of disease
    arrested cases out of those
    detected                    50            60          75          90

17. Blindness-Incidence (%)    1.4             1         0.7         0.3



Progress Achieved

During the last three decades and more, since the attainment of Independence, considerable progress has been achieved in the promotion of the health status of our people. Smallpox has been eliminated; plague is no longer a problem; mortality from cholera and related diseases has decreased and malaria brought under control to a considerable extent. The mortality rate per thousand of population has been reduced from 27.4 to 14.8 and the life expectancy at birth has increased from 32.7 to over 52. A fairly extensive network of dispensaries, hospitals and institutions providing specialised curative care has developed and a large stock of medical and health personnel, of various levels, has become available. Significant indigenous capacity has been established for the production of drugs and pharmaceuticals, vaccines, sera, hospital equipments, etc.

The existing picture

In spite of such impressive progress, the demographic and health picture of the country still constitutes a cause for serious and urgent concern. The high rate of population growth continues to have an adverse effect on the health of our people and the quality of their lives. The mortality rates for women and children are still dis- tressingly high; almost one third of the total deaths occur among children below the age of 5 years; infant mortality is around 129 per thousand live births. Efforts at raising the nutritional levels of our people have still to bear fruit and the extent and severity of malnutrition continues to be exceptionally high. Communicable and non- communicable diseases have still to be brought under effective control and eradicated. Blindness, Leprosy and T.B. continue to have a high incidence. Only 31% of the rural population has access to potable water supply and 0.5% enjoys basic sanitation.

High incidence of diarrhoeal diseases and other preventive and infectious diseases, specially amongst infants and children, lack of safe drinking water and poor environmental sanitation, poverty and ignorance are among the major contributory causes of the high incidence of disease and mortality.

The existing situation has been largely engendered by the almost wholesale adoption of health manpower development policies and the establishment of curative centres based on the Western models, which are inappropriate and irrelevant to the real needs of our people and the socio-economic conditions obtaining in the country. The hospital-based disease, and cure-oriented approach towards the establishment of medical services has provided benefits to the upper crusts, of society, specially those residing in the urban areas. The proliferation of this approach has been at the cost of providing comprehensive primary health care services to the entire population, whether residing in the urban or the rural areas. Furthermore, the continued high emphasis on the curative approach has led to the neglect of the preventive, promotive, public health and rehabilitative aspects of health care. The existing approach, instead of improving awareness and building up self-reliance, has tended to enhance dependency and weaken t he community's capacity to cope with its problems. The prevailing policies in regard to the education and training of medical and health personnel, at various levels, has resulted in the development of a cultural gap between the people and the personnel providing care. The various health programmes have, by and large, failed to involve individuals and families in establishing a self-reliant community. Also, over the years, the planning process has become largely oblivious of the fact that the ultimate goal of achieving a satisfactory health status for all our people cannot be secured without involving the community in the identification of their health needs and priorities as well as in the implementation and management of the various health and related programmes.

Need for evolving a health policy--- the revised 20-Point Programme India is committed to attaining the goal of "Health for All by the Year 2000 A.D." through the universal provision of comprehensive primary health care services. The attainment of this goal requires a thorough overhaul of the existing approaches to the education and training of medical and health personnel and the reorganisation of the health services infrastructure. Furthermore, considering the large variety of inputs into health, it is necessary to secure the complete integration of all plans for health and human development with the overall national socio-economic development process, specially in the more closely health related sectors, e.g. drugs and pharmaceu- ticals, agriculture and food production, rural development, education and social welfare, housing, water supply and sanitation, prevention of food adulteration, main- tenance of prescribed standards in the manufacture and sale of drugs and the conservation of the environment. In sum, the contours of the National Health Policy have to be evolved within a fully integrated planning framework which seeks to provide universal, comprehensive primary health care services, relevant to the actual needs and priorities of the community at a cost which the people can afford, ensuring that the planning and implementation of the various health programmes is through the organised involvement and participation of the community, adequately utilising the services being rendered by private voluntary organisations active in the Health sector.

It is also necessary to ensure that the pattern of development of the health services infrastructure in the future fully takes into account the revised 20-Point Programme. The said Programme attributes very high priority to the promotion of family planning as a people's programme, on a voluntary basis; substantial augmenta- tion and provision of primary health care facilities on a universal basis; control of Leprosy, T.B. and Blindness; acceleration of welfare programmes for women and children; nutrition programmes for pregnant women, nursing mothers and children, especially in the tribal, hill and backward areas. The Programme also places high emphasis on the supply of drinking water to all problem villages, improvements in the housing and environments of the weaker sections of society; increased production of essential food items; integrated rural developments; spread of universal elementary education; expansion of the public distribution system, etc.

Population stabilisation

Irrespective of the changes, no matter how fundamental, that may be brought about in the over-all approach to health care and the restructuring of the health services, not much headway is likely to be achieved in improving the health status of the people unless success is achieved in securing the small family norm, through voluntary efforts, and moving towards the goal of population stabilisation. In view of the vital importance of securing the balanced growth of the population, it is neces- sary to enunciate, separately, a National Population Policy.

Source: MOH&FW WEB Site

Estimated Population of India Oct. 2000 is 1,012,000,000

Rate of Increase During July 2000 to June 2001
Per Year = 15,402,000 
Per Month = 1,283,500 
Per Day = 42,197 
Per Hour = 1,758 
Per Minute = 29 

CONTACT:

INSTITUTE for RESEARCH in MEDICAL STATISTICS
(Indian Council of Medical Research)
Ansari Nagar, New Delhi -110029 - India
Telephone: 6514903, 6564901, 6564900
Fax: 6515635, 6868662 & 6856713(ICMR)

Email :irms@icmr.delhi.nic.in

Dr. ARVIND PANDEY

Director
Telephone :
Office: (011) 651 4903, 651 5635
Residence: (011)6493145
Email :arvindp55@hotmail.com




  • Web Links
  • Population Clock(All India)
  • Population Clock(India - States)
  • World Population