Background: Internationally, the implementation of cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention programs by nurse practitioners is being encouraged. Evidence suggests the effectiveness of nurse-led clinics for the primary and secondary prevention of CVDs. However, in India, nurses are underutilized for this task. The present study was undertaken to check the feasibility of task shifting of CVD risk assessment and management by nurses and have concluded that given appropriate training, nurses can do this task. However, to facilitate the implementation of these tasks by nurses at the larger level, barriers need to be identified and lifted. Hence, the experiences of nurses who participated in the study were assessed. Methodology: Qualitative approach was adopted to explore the experiences of nurses who participated in the study to determine the potential barriers and facilitators to implementing CV risk assessment and management using the World Health Organization/International Society of Hypertension (WHO/ISH) charts as routine practice by nurses. In-depth interviews were conducted with the help of the topic guide. These interviews were transcribed verbatim for analysis. A total of six in-depth interviews were conducted. No new themes emerged after the first four interviews. Results: A total of six nurses participated in the study. All the nurses were female, with the mean age of 38 ± 9.2 years. The analysis resulted in seven key themes which are crucial to the nurses involvement in CVD risk assessment and management. The themes are (1) Use of WHO/ISH charts in routine nursing practice, (2) Lack of contact with patients, (3) Time, (4) Lack of appraisal and Performance-based appraisal, (5) Increasing the scope of task shifting, (6) Infrastructure, (7) Training facilities for nurses, (8) Team member support. Conclusion: The study concludes that despite the challenges and barriers participating nurses expressed their willingness to do the task of CVD risk assessment and management. Appropriate training and continuous feedback from the higher health-care professional is essential for the successful implementation of CVD risk assessment and communication as routine practice by nurses. The availability of adequate workforce and time were the key concerns raised by participating nurses.

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Background: Noncommunicable diseases are assuming great importance among the adult population in both developed and developing countries. Cancer is major among them and has become one of the main health problems in the present era. Cancer registry reports in India may help to find distinct patterns in the types of cancer at a regional level, mainly due to the heterogeneity in underlying risk factors. Tailored interventions and services which intensifies the need for assessing the trends of common cancers are needed to deliver high-quality cancer care in future. Objectives: We conducted the study to assess the trend of different types of cancers during 5 years from a hospital-based cancer registry in a tertiary care hospital and to assess the sociodemographic factors associated with different cancers. Settings and Design: The register review study was conducted in a tertiary center in Thrissur, Kerala, India. Materials and Methods: Data were collected for 5 years from a hospital-based cancer registry and analyzed using the SPSS software. Results: The data consists of 10,670 cancer patients. The data of each year were analyzed separately. There were 2205 patients in 2012, 2214 patients in 2013, 2264 patients in 2014, 1848 patients in 2015, and 2189 patients in 2016. The most common cancer in each year was breast cancer, lung cancer, and colorectal cancer. Breast cancers are more prone in women 51–60 years age group. Lung cancer is more seen in 61–70 years age group. Conclusion: The most common cancers among both sexes in all years from 2012 to 2016 were breast cancer, lung cancer, and colorectal cancer. Furthermore, there was an increasing trend of prostate cancer and decrease of esophageal, acute leukemia, and ovarian cancers.

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MPOWER is an evidence-based package of the six most effective demand reduction interventions to reduce tobacco use. Global evidence shows that introduction of this package has accelerated and strengthened tobacco control worldwide with over 5 billion people living in 136 countries covered by at least one of these key interventions. This paper comments on how tobacco control laws in a low and middle income country, Pakistan, are meeting the MPOWER package provisions and what the challenges and opportunities for tobacco control are in the country. Pakistan is home to over 24 million tobacco users consuming a variety of tobacco products including 10 million smokeless tobacco users. Pakistan has introduced several laws to meet its international commitments under the framework convention against tobacco control and MPOWER package. However, gaps in existing policies, poor law enforcement, and a conflicting political economy of tobacco in the country pose major challenges for effective tobacco control. The changing political environment with renowned public health activists in current government, an active and independent judiciary, increasing use of social media, and a dynamic civil society offer opportunities to strengthen its efforts for effective policy actions against tobacco use.

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