Southern States - Karnataka   

Free cardiac treatment for poor children

By Our Special Correspondent

Bangalore May 28. Manipal Hospital is planning to provide free cardiac treatment to one poor child with heart disorder every day.

This has become possible with Needy Heart Foundation, the charity wing of the hospital, joining hands with Gift of Life, a New York-based philanthropic foundation. Five children have been treated so far this week.

Gift of Life has sponsored surgeries of over 3,500 children needing cardiac care, since 1975.

Over the last 10 years, Manipal Hospital has established itself in philanthropic activities, conducting a large number of surgeries at highly subsidised cost or free for poor and needy patients.

For the programme in Bangalore, an amount of funding equivalent to that given by Gift of Life will be given by the Rotary Club under its ``matching grant'' scheme.

Ashok Bolar has been appointed Project Coordinator and Rajan Deshpande, a leading paediatrician from Hubli, will be the coordinator.

Ravishankar Bhooplapur, Director, Gift of Life-India, says, "our estimates suggest that over 40,000 poor children with cardiac problems need immediate attention in India.

"It is good to have Manipal Hospital, the most advanced cardiac care facility in the region, as our partner to treat these children.''

The Manipal Hospital Chief Executive Officer, R.Basil, said the partnership would help those who could not opt treatment for want of money.

Gift of Life was established in 1975 by a group of Rotarians in the U.S. and is a partnership of Rotary members and physicians worldwide, to reach out to poor and needy children who can be saved with the miracle of cardiac surgery.

Another initiative of this programme enables doctors to receive technical training and help children in their own countries.

The idea of Needy Heart Foundation was conceived by two young surgeons of Manipal Hospital, who came across a number of heart patients needing urgent treatment, during free heart camps conducted in villages.

The foundation was formed to generate financial support for patients from the weaker sections of society.

The foundation also conducts awareness camps on preventing heart disease.

In yet another move to help needy patients, the Manipal Institute of Nephrology and Urology at the Manipal Hospital has joined hands with Belanje Sanjeeva Hegde Trust to launch a free dialysis scheme.

This will be inaugurated by U.R.Ananthamurthy on Saturday.

The Trust helps poor patients with kidney disorders, and the Hospital, which conducts a record number of 2,000 dialysis every month, has been providing a number of<243> innovative services such as the Kidney Helpline, Home Dialysis and Night Dialysis and also subsidised ambulance services.

The Director of Nephrology, Sudarshan Ballal, said, "kidney disease is a serious problem in our country; an estimated two lakh persons develop serious kidney failure each year and about 10,000 are likely to be in the State."

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Southern States

News: Front Page | National | Southern States | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary |

Stories in this Section

• Chitravathi Project will go ahead: Krishna
• Extra load-shedding for nine days
• BJP MP quits party, plans to float regional outfit
• Gaur gives birth to male calf at Mysore Zoo
• `Varuna Japa' at Malpe Beach today
• Yoga to be made compulsory in Udupi schools
• Free cardiac treatment for poor children
• New postings for IAS officers
• Koujalgi in the eye of another storm
• Quota urged for SC/STs in private sector
• Did insecurity prompt Sankeshwar's exit from BJP?

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu