Taiwan Targets Blood-Bag Production as China Steps Up Pressure
Taiwan aims to start producing its own blood bags — a key item for saving lives on the battlefield — adding to signs President Lai Ching-te is stepping up preparations for a potential conflict with China.
The Health Ministry has been working closely with other government agencies, including the National Security Council, to enhance Taiwan's medical preparedness for emergencies, Deputy Health Minister Lin Ching-yi told Bloomberg News. Strengthening domestic production capacity for key medical supplies, including blood bags, is a part of the strategy, she said, as was ensuring that imports of medical supplies were secure.
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3 hours ago
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France imposes smoking ban on beaches, parks
Anyone who lights up on a beach or in a public park in France will be breaking the law from Sunday under new rules aimed at protecting children from the dangers of passive smoking. Bus shelters and areas in the immediate vicinity of libraries, swimming pools and schools will also be affected by the ban, which is coming into force one day after its publication in the official government gazette on Saturday. The rule is being imposed one week before the beginning of the school holidays in France in a clear bid to immediately protect children from smoke on the beach. However, to the disappointment of some anti-tobacco activists, the ban does not cover the terraces of bars and restaurants where many French still happily light up. They are also unhappy that the ban does not apply to electronic cigarettes. The rules had initially been expected to come into force on Tuesday after a previous announcement by the health ministry but the publication in the official gazette means this has now been brought forward to Sunday. People should also not smoke within a 10 metres radius of schools, swimming pools, libraries and other places that hurt minors. The health ministry said it would announce the minimum distance for smoking in these areas in the coming days as well as reveal the sign used to designate such areas. Violators of the ban could face a fine of 135 euros ($160) up to a maximum of 700 euros. However the health ministry is expecting an initial grace period as the new rules are explained. "Tobacco must disappear from places where there are children. A park, a beach, a school -- these are places to play, learn, and breathe. Not for smoking," Health and Family Minister Catherine Vautrin said. This is another step "towards a tobacco-free generation", she added, which France is targeting from 2032. - 'It must be clear' - The ban "is a step in the right direction, but remains insufficient," said Yves Martinet, president of the National Committee Against Smoking (CNCT), criticising the continued permission to smoke on cafe terraces. "The minister points to the protection of children," but children "also go to the terraces," Martinet, a pulmonologist, said. He lamented the absence of e-cigarettes from the text, saying flavours are used to "hook young people". "For a measure to be effective, it must be clear -- no consumption of products containing tobacco or nicotine in public," Martinet said. But Frank Delvau, president of the Union of Hotel Trades and Industries (UMIH) for the Paris region, said a ban on smoking on cafe terraces "would only shift the problem because people on terraces would go smoke next to these establishments". "Smokers and non-smokers can coexist" on terraces, the "last places of conviviality and freedom," said Franck Trouet, of hospitality association Hotels and Restaurants of France (GHR). In France, passive exposure to tobacco smoke causes 3,000 to 5,000 deaths per year, according to official figures. Smoking is steadily declining in France with "the lowest prevalence ever recorded since 2000", according to France addiction agency the OFDT. Less than a quarter of adults aged 18 to 75 reported smoking daily in 2023, according to the agency. Smoking causes 75,000 deaths per year in France and, again according to the OFDT, costs society 156 billion euros annually, counting factors including lost lives, quality of life, productivity, prevention, law enforcement, and healthcare. According to a recent opinion survey, 62 percent of French people favour a smoking ban in public places. ch-ref-alu-sjw/gv/tc
Yahoo
8 hours ago
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A pioneering doctor remembers India leader Indira Gandhi's final moments
Not much about Sneh Bhargava's life seems ordinary. In 1984, she became the first woman to helm the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the capital Delhi - one of the country's top medical institutions - and in its almost 70-year history, remains the only woman to have done so. At 90, Dr Bhargava - one of India's pioneering radiologists - began writing her memoir, The Woman Who Ran AIIMS, which was published earlier this month, and at 95, continues to remain an active member in the medical community. From choosing radiology when it was still emerging in 1940s India to becoming one of its most well-known practitioners, Dr Bhargava's legacy is nothing short of extraordinary. Not unlike her first day on the job as director-to-be of AIIMS, which was nothing short of a trial by fire. It was the morning of 31 October 1984, and a meeting was under way at the hospital to confirm her appointment after India's then prime minister Indira Gandhi had selected her for the role. Dr Bhargava was not part of the meeting, but was in her office reviewing medical cases for the day. She recalls in her memoir hearing a colleague frantically call out to her, asking her to rush to the casualty ward. There, lying on a gurney was the very woman who had selected Dr Bhargava to head the hospital - Indira Gandhi. Her saffron sari was drenched in blood and she had no pulse. "At the time, I didn't focus on it being the prime minister who was lying in front of me," Dr Bhargava told the BBC. "My first thoughts were that we had to help her and also protect her from further harm," she said. Dr Bhargava was worried that a mob would storm the casualty ward, as a large crowd had already begun gathering outside the hospital. News began to trickle out: Gandhi had been shot by two Sikh bodyguards in revenge for Operation Blue Star, the military raid on Amritsar's Golden Temple in June to flush out militants. Gandhi's assassination sparked one of the deadliest riots India has seen, the beginnings of which Dr Bhargava began hearing about as she hastened to shift the prime minister to one of the building's top floors. There, in the operating theatre, a Sikh doctor fled the room the minute he heard how Gandhi had died. The news of her death had to be kept under wraps until her son, Rajiv Gandhi was sworn in as prime minister. "Until then, our job, for the next four hours, was to keep up the charade that we were trying to save her life, when in fact she was dead when she was brought to AIIMS," Dr Bhargava writes. She also described the harrowing process of embalming the prime minister's body, which would lie in state in the capital for two days before cremation. "The embalming chemical, when we injected it into different main arteries, kept oozing out," Dr Bhargava writes. A ballistic report would later reveal that over three dozen bullets had punctured Gandhi's body. But this wasn't the only remarkable episode in Dr Bhargava's long and illustrious career at AIIMS. In the book she shares fascinating anecdotes of her interactions with other prominent politicians, including India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. She also recalls Sonia Gandhi bringing her son, a young Rahul to AIIMS after an arrow grazed his head while he was playing. "Sonia Gandhi told me that she had to bring Rahul to us because Rajiv (her husband) was meeting the King of Jordan and the latter had given him a fancy car as a gift, which her husband was keen to drive," she writes in the book. Rajiv Gandhi wanted to drive Rahul to AIIMS himself, without security, as a surprise - but Dr Bhargava firmly stopped him, citing safety concerns. But not every day was as exciting. Dr Bhargava recalls political pressure, including an MP who threatened her for not selecting his son-in-law for a job at AIIMS. On another occasion, two top politicians, including the federal health secretary, tried to handpick the AIIMS dean - though the decision was hers alone. Dr Bhargava says she stood firm against pressure, always prioritising patient care. She worked to establish radiology as a core part of diagnosis and treatment at AIIMS. When Dr Bhargava joined in the 1960s, AIIMS had only basic imaging tools. She trained colleagues to read subtle signs in black-and-white X-rays, always in context with the patient's history. She later pushed for better equipment, helping build one of India's leading radiology departments. Dr Bhargava was always drawn to making a difference. Born in 1930 into an affluent family in Lahore in undivided India, as a child she loved playing doctor to her dolls and siblings. During the partition of India and Pakistan, Dr Bhargava's family fled to India and later, she would visit refugee camps with her father to help people. At a time when few Indian women pursued higher education, Dr Bhargava studied radiology in London - the only woman in both her class and hospital department. She returned to India in the 1950s after hearing from her mentor that the country was in need of skilled radiologists. Dr Bhargava often credits her family, and her husband's liberal-mindedness for helping her achieve her dreams, and she hopes other Indian women find the same support. "It starts from childhood," she says. "Parents should support their daughters the same way they support their sons. Only then will they be able to break glass ceilings and reach for the stars." Follow BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, X and Facebook.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
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Health minister: Singapore to raise first-time blood donor age limit to 65 from 2026
SINGAPORE, June 29 — From January 1, 2026, the age limit for first-time blood donors in Singapore will be raised from 60 to 65, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung announced yesterday. According to Channel News Asia (CNA), Ong said the move aims to expand the donor pool amid rising demand and an ageing population. He also said the decision reflects longer life expectancy and data showing fewer adverse reactions among older donors. 'There is no reason to believe that once you cross 60 years old, suddenly the adverse reaction prevalence rate is going to shoot up,' he reportedly said at a World Blood Donor Day event yesterday. Singapore's new limit brings it in line with countries such as the United Kingdom and South Korea. Currently, only repeat donors can give blood beyond age 60, if they meet health criteria. The country's blood supply remains under pressure, with new donor numbers falling and demand increasing — over 35,000 patients required transfusions in 2023. Seasonal dips and past critical shortages, especially in Group O blood, have also posed challenges.
