Mumbai:
While heart attacks and neurological disorders continue to be the top life-threatening ailments across the country, kidney related disorders are on the prowl and on a steady rise, particularly amongst the millennials, reveals a study conducted by SBI General Insurance. The study comes out on the occasion of World Kidney Day, with the objective of spreading awareness around the rising incidences of renal impairments within the country.
As per the data released by SBI General Insurance, kidney ailments continue to shoot up for millennials. The study also throws light on the fact that from the overall kidney related claims, the total number of claims made by males is higher as compared to women.
In FY 15-16, the percentage of claims for women were 39 per cent whereas for men were 61 per cent, in FY16-17, it stood at 43 per cent for women and 57 per cent for men, in FY 17-18, it stood at 44 per cent for women and at 56 per cent for men. In the last year, FY 18-19, the percentages stood at 44% for women and 49 per cent for men. So, it is interesting to note that year on year, the percentages have gone down for men whereas they have increased for women.
Metro cities have reported majority percentage of claims – 69 per cent whereas non-metros have reported 31 per cent claims only. This may be due to specialized treatment and dialysis facility available at metros and a lack of health resources within access in smaller cities.
Aa few interesting trends that emerged in the survey are:
4 per cent of the total health insurance claims paid are for kidney-related claims
Second highest disease settled for renal Diseases usually associated with Heart related complaints with one of the complications with renal diseases
70 per cent of claims settled for kidney-related ailments over the last four years are under the non-surgical category, where most of the diseases are managed with dialysis. There has been a year-on-year increase in this since FY 15-16 to FY 18-19
Majority of the claims – 69 per cent are paid from metropolitan cities while 31 per cent are from non-metro cities. This could be due to the specialized treatment and dialysis facilities available in metropolitan cities
Mr. Sukhesh Bhave, Head, – Accident & Health Claims, SBI General Insurance said, “In its early stages, chronic kidney disease can lurk silently in the body, showing fewer or no symptoms at all. However, as time passes, it starts affecting vital organs leading to impairment and failure. The end stage renal disease may result in renal failure or kidney failure and can be life threatening.”
He added, “Most women often tend to hesitate in getting a health check-up done as they fear the cost of treatment that may come with a possible diagnosis and tend to ignore the symptoms. We are aiming to encourage women to change this behavior by offering products like SBI General’s Simple Health Insurance Policy has an affordable premium of Rs. 1,300 per year and offers a wide coverage from Rs. 50,000 up to Rs. 5,00,000. Furthermore, the policy offers free medical check-ups for every four claim-free years up to a maximum limit of Rs. 2,500.”
Meanwhile,SBI Life Insurance launches “Thanks a Dot”, a self-examination awareness campaign for early detection of breast cancer, awareness initiative that is supported by the Women’s Cancer Initiative -Tata Memorial Hospital.
The programme intends to empower the women of India by educating them about early lump detection through simple self-examination techniques. An easy-to-use self-training module to detect the early signs of lump formation can be ordered free of cost through SBI Life’s corporate website.
Website Link: https://www.sbilife.co.in/thanksadot
Video link: https://youtu.be/cq8BjLdbLNE
To take this initiative forward and ensure maximum reach, the communication and promotions online will be handled and executed by SBI Life’s digital and social media partner, WATConsult, the digital and social media agency from the house of Dentsu Aegis Network.
According to the Union Health Ministry, Breast Cancer ranks as the number one cancer disease among Indian females. Around 20% of breast cancers are detected by physical examination but unfortunately, only 38% of women regularly undergo self-breast examination. Further, studies indicate that 1 in 28 women are likely to develop breast cancer during her lifetime making it even more essential for women to self-examine. While treatment costs can range between INR 2.5 lakhs to 20 lakhs, there is an alarming need for financial preparedness for the treatment, if diagnosed.
Devieka Bhojwani, a Breast Cancer survivor and Vice President of Women’s Cancer Initiative-Tata Memorial Hospital said, “The Women’s Cancer Initiative, has been constantly working towards making a difference, by spreading awareness about the importance of early detection in Breast Cancer. India is seeing a steady rise in the cases of Breast Cancer, with as many as 1,00,000 new cases being detected every year. Early detection is vital and can improve cure rates in about 80% of the cases. Many Indian women and their families rarely understand the importance of this issue and fail to undergo regular check-ups. SBI Life’s Thanks-A-Dot tool allows you to learn and understand what a lump would feel like. It is your way to start familiarising yourself.”
Ravindra Sharma, Chief of Brand & Corporate Communications, SBI Life Insurance said “Cancer in India has more than doubled over the last 26 years. The impact can be devastating on families both emotionally and financially. Though breast cancer is most common among Indian women both in terms of occurrence as well as mortality, it continues to remain a taboo in India. Moreover, women who are aware of the concept of self-examination are unsure of what a lump feels like. ‘Thanks-A-Dot’ is a path-breaking initiative. While improving tactile capacity in women it also simultaneously fosters positive conversations around self-breast examination, thereby breaking social barriers that have plagued our society for long.”
‘Thanks A Dot’ self-detection tool has been designed using real breast cancer mammograms to re-create breast cancer lumps using a special algorithm and 3D printing. The breast cancer lump shapes are put on a learning card in the form of a language inspired by Braille. Users solve puzzles and quizzes using the special language (present on the learning card), thus capturing a positive feeling of carrying out early detection examination and promoting regular self-checks. 'Thanks A Dot' helps improve tactile (touch) capacity in women to detect early signs of lump formation.