WHO recently declared India to be free of which communicable disease?

KPSC Staff Nurse - 2015

Community Health Nursing

Easy

Appeared in: KPSC Staff Nurse - 2015

Explanation

In August 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared that India has successfully eliminated Trachoma as a public health problem.
Trachoma is a chronic infectious eye disease caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis and is the world's leading infectious cause of blindness.
India achieved this milestone by implementing the WHO-recommended SAFE strategy: Surgery for advanced disease, Antibiotics to clear infection, Facial cleanliness, and Environmental improvement to reduce transmission.
This makes Trachoma the most recent major communicable disease to be declared eliminated from India, following other successes like Polio and Maternal & Neonatal Tetanus.

Option A: Chickenpox (Varicella) is still a common, endemic viral disease in India. It has not been eliminated, and many people contract it during childhood.
Option B: India has eliminated Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus (MNT) as a public health problem (validated in 2015), but not tetanus itself. Tetanus can still occur from contaminated wounds.
Option C: While India has a goal to eliminate Measles and Rubella, the country still experiences outbreaks. Elimination has not yet been achieved or certified by the WHO.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Knowing Disease Elimination Status in India helps nurses interpret findings accurately and avoid errors in routine assessment, medication administration, and patient teaching.
Nurses, especially in community health, are at the forefront of disease elimination programs. Their role includes surveillance, health education, and ensuring high vaccination coverage.
For Trachoma, nurses educate communities on the SAFE strategy (Surgery, Antibiotics, Facial cleanliness, Environmental improvement) to prevent recurrence and new infections.
A key nursing responsibility is the timely reporting of suspected cases of any notifiable disease (like Acute Flaccid Paralysis for polio surveillance) to the public health system.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the key terms in the question: 'WHO', 'India', 'free of', and especially 'recently'.
The word 'recently' is a critical qualifier. It means you need to recall the most current public health announcements regarding disease elimination.
Evaluate each option based on your knowledge of India's public health status.
Recall that India was declared polio-free in 2014 and MNT-free in 2015. These are significant but not the most recent events.
Consider the other options. Chickenpox and Measles are known to be still prevalent.
Based on the most recent WHO declarations, Trachoma (eliminated in 2023) is the correct answer, as it is more recent than the polio elimination.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 1 — Subpart C (pp 404-604 of 604) p. 124-126

E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 1 — Subpart B (pp 202-403 of 604) p. 60-62