Affecting lives, assisting hospitals
In India, the rural population almost always prefers to access Government health care facilities due to the exorbitant pricing of private health institutions. The Dr BRA Rotary Cancer Hospital within the AIIMS Campus in New Delhi, has 1500 patient visits monthly. The lack of staff makes it challenging for them to provide quality treatment and care for all. Understanding the need for resources, Lebara Foundation supports Dr BRA Rotary Cancer hospital by providing them with manpower support that includes project manager, nurses, dietician and paramedical staff.
The Doctors are assisted by a team of interns while treating the patient who, with their parents are provided counselling on Fever and Infection Control by Nurses. Fever is a major cause for concern for children with cancer and hence counselling on approaching immediate medical attention in case of fever is important for reduction of mortality. With the foundation’s support, Fever cards have been provided to patients for continuous effective treatment.
The increase in manpower and effective data management has been instrumental in the reduction of treatment dropouts from 9% to 7.4%. And the hospital can now accommodate an average patient load of around 200-250 per day. Lebara is thrilled to play a part in increasing the capacity to handle patients as it would directly benefit the lives of the children.
Going the extra mile in helping Santhini
The story of 13 year old Santhini, a mentally challenged girl residing in the Gummudipoondi refugee camp in Tiruvallur district, is quite unique. Santhini’s mother is a single parent and works as a helper in a private firm, struggling to feed her 3 children. Her senile grandmother keeps an eye on young Santhini when her mother is away.
When we first met Santhini, she was malnourished, anaemic and suffered from epileptic seizures at the age of 11. Our implementing partner, ADRA ensured her condition drastically improved with proper nutrition and they also assigned her an Occupational therapist to help with daily tasks. Santhini hit puberty at age 12 and her mother found it very challenging to help her understand how to deal with her physical and hormonal changes. An ADRA Community Volunteer, Ms Rajeshwari suggested the use of adult diapers to help Santhini when she is on her menstrual cycle.
Shantini hit puberty at age 12 and her mother found it very challenging to help her understand how to deal with her physical and hormonal changes.
Now, Lebara ensures Santhini receives a pack of 32 diapers every month to make certain that she is comfortable on her menstrual cycle. The occupational therapist continues to assist her. Lebara Foundation through its implementing partner ensures regular follow up treatment through linkages and monetary assistance and this has greatly benefitted several children. Santhini’s mother is relieved and grateful for the efforts of community volunteers, ADRA and Lebara’s to have played a role in the adolescent stages of Saanthini.
A Heart lives on and beats in gratitude today!
Kavyashree was born normal but developed a hole in her heart when she was just six months old. By the time she was three she had already undergone surgery to close the hole. But this did not help her sustain her health and in the next few years, her condition started deteriorating. She lost weight and had breathing difficulty.
Moreover her lungs got dilated which led to further complications. At this stage, she was referred to Apollo Hospitals in Chennai ,where the only option available for her survival was to undergo complete heart transplantation. This procedure primarily meant waiting for a donor heart to become available and then undergo surgery within six hours, wherein a live heart is moved from the donor and is transplanted. The hospital gave the parents only 30 days time until which she could be maintained under her current condition and the surgery would cost over GBP 25,000.
Kavyashree’s parents had to take the risk of waiting for a donor to become available and organise for the required funds in hope and anticipation. Being teachers in a private sector school in Ranipet,there was no way they could not mobilise the funds required through their sources. Having heard about Lebara Foundation’s commitment to help children in need, the parents made an appealto the foundation to save her life. The required funds were immediately provided and the wait for a donor started. Luckily for Kavyashree, the next of kin of a person who became brain dead in a road accident came forward to donate his heart to her, and within a couple of hours, the transplantation was successfully completed. This was in December 2014.
Today, Kavyashree is almost a normal child, but for the periodic investigations and reviews she requires as follow up. She is hoping to be fit enough to get back to school soon. The family has no words to express their gratitude to Lebara Foundation for its timely support without which their precious child would not have been among them today.
Sight for 1000 project – Bihar, India
Bihar is the third most populated state in India with our hundred million population. About 50% of them earn less than a pound income per day. Medical statistics reveal the existence of a million blind children and adults in the state, who do not have the wherewithal to undergo a fifteen minute magic surgery that would help them regain their vision and see the world like any one of us.
A generous donation of $52,500 made by Lebara Foundation to the 20/20/20 programme which envisages bringing back 20/20 vision to 20 million people around the globe, supported 100 children and 900 adults in seeing the world for the first time in Bihar.
2-year-old Rajveer, who was one of the children who underwent surgery through the Lebara grant was born blind in both eyes due to congenital cataracts. Today, he has normal vision in both eyes and a second chance at life. Dr Ashish Agarwal, Paediatric ophthalmologist at the Akhand Jyoti Eye Hospital who was one of the twenty eye surgeons who worked on restoring vision to 1000 patients, says that the generous grant from Lebara has enabled bright beautiful children to see the world and grow up as normal children.