Healthcare is vital for all of us some of the time, but public health is vital to all of us all the time. Goal No. 3 of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) also talks about good health and well-being for all. Significant collaborative efforts in this direction will help us achieve public health and well-being.
Dhanush Foundation in collaboration with SJVN Foundation (philanthropy arm of SJVN Ltd.) started operation of 6 Mobile Medical Units (MMUs) in Buxar District of Bihar State in November 2021. The program Chikitsa Chikitsak Aapke Dwar (CCAD) itself is very essential part of National Health Mission (NHM) that facilitates access to public health care particularly to people living in remote, difficult, under-served and unreached areas.
These MMUs are providing its valuable services in remote areas of Buxar, Dinara, Ramgarh, Brahmpur, Dumraon, Rajpur and serving people from various communities at their doorstep. These regions are particularly rural, vulnerable and under-served areas where primary healthcare facilities are not available nearby or there is a shortage of qualified healthcare providers.
How does it work?
- Monthly and weekly schedules are created basis discussion with local panchayats and village representatives. Required information is disseminated to villagers through various means of communication. The MMU vehicle arrives at designated location for health camp.
- Each health camps runs as per defined manual. Each patient is registered, receive medical consultation and diagnosis as required, medicines are dispensed as prescribed.
- For specialist consultation through tele-medicine facility, calls are routed through CCAD mobile app to the doctors available during that time.
- For critical cases, they are referred to higher medical centres upon primary examination.
- Special attention is given to mother & childcare. As a part of special programs, data is uploaded in government portal namely ‘Sapthah’ for mothers and ‘Bala Suraksha’ for children.
Objectives of the program:
- Provide mobile healthcare services in Buxar District covering rural areas of Buxar, Dinara, Ramgarh, Brahmpur, Dumraon, Rajpur
- Provide diagnostic consultation and dispense medicines on the spot for the common ailments; refer to hospital and higher centres for critical cases
- Special focus on maternal and child health
- Raise awareness about preventive healthcare including family planning, communicable and other regional diseases
Services Offered:
- Free medical consultation from qualified physician including advice on preventive care, hygiene and sanitation
- Free pathology service
- Free medicines as prescribed by physician
- Awareness sessions about preventive healthcare, communicable diseases with special focus on mother and childcare, elderly patients
- COVID-19 management and its awareness
Additional services provided by MMUs:
- Specialist Tele-consultation – In collaboration with AIIMS Patna and our medical Hubs, we provide specialist medical consultation through tele-medicine facility. Expert services like cardiology, paediatrics and gynaecology at your doorstep is a huge step toward raising the standard of healthcare.
- AYUSH Services – During the COVID times, significant focus has been shifted to Ayurveda. Our endeavour is to provide comprehensive primary healthcare to our patients. Through these MMUs, we also promote Indian traditional medicine system; Ayurveda to ensure holistic healthcare. Ayurveda physician and Ayurveda medicines are also available at our MMUs.
- Special Programs – Special wellness and awareness campaigns are essential component of these MMUs.
- Bala Sapthah: A week long healthcare screening of 4D conditions of children of 0-18 years’ age as per Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) Guidelines, uploading the screening data on RBSK Portal and referral to PHC for any positive test cases.
- Mata – Shishu Sapthah: Auxiliary Nurse Midwife Online (ANMOL) services for pregnant and lactating women providing assistance and care with regards to Nutrition, Vaccination, Anemia, Hypertension and uploading of the data to Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) portal
- NCD Services: Screening of Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like BP, diabetes and providing medical consultation assistance to all the beneficiaries who are 30+ years of age along with screening tests, medicines and uploading the data to NCD portal
- Yoga sessions: Yoga sessions are organized at regular intervals thus ensuring preventive healthcare
- Referral services: The model so adopted at our program derives a predefined referral matrix for saving the lives in case of emergency. It is derived on the basis of location, nature of procedure or intervention required, criticality of the patient etc.
Each unit of MMU includes:
- A qualified trained physician
- Teleconsultation facility for consultation with specialist Doctors
- Auxiliary Nurse and Midwife (ANM)
- Trained driver
- Lab technician and lab related equipment’s
- Medical equipment comprised of ECG machine, BP machine, Blood glucose meter etc.
- Medical consumables and medicines
Outcome and Impact:
- 6 MMUs running across Buxar District providing preventive and curative services in rural areas of Buxar, Dinara, Ramgarh, Brahmpur, Dumraon, Rajpur
- 1900 patients are receiving medical services through these MMUs each month
- Impacting more than 5,000 beneficiaries each month through awareness, preventive healthcare, yoga sessions, mother & childcare, specialised medical consultation through tele-consultation, specialised camps etc.
