In these days of crass commercialisation of healthcare, it may be hard to believe that a band of dedicated young doctors is giving up lucrative assignments and even risking their lives to serve in rural areas on a voluntary basis.
You may have never heard of a group called 'Doctors for You' (DFY), but this group created ripples in international medical circles this past week by winning the best 'Medical team in a crisis zone' award leaving behind strong contenders such as Medecins Sans Frontieres and Save the Children. The group got the award for medical relief it offered during the 2008 Kosi floods in Bihar. The award, instituted by publishers of the British Medical Journal celebrates an individual or team that has had an exceptional impact on a crisis situation.
The group deployed 110 of its members who treated 130,000 patients over six months through 300 mobile clinics, district hospitals and camps.
Interestingly, this group of mostly young doctors and medical students from government hospitals and medical colleges was born out of a necessity in August 2007.
It is not a typical NGO looking for opportunities for social work. During the monsoon season, government hospitals face shortage of blood and platelets when they are flooded with cases of malaria and dengue. In order to deal with such shortages, some medicos in Mumbai formed a group to promote voluntary donation of blood and platelets.
When Bihar faced the flood situation, Dr Ravikant Singh - who hails from the state and had founded the voluntary blood donation group - decided to take a small medical team there in August 2008. This slowly grew into a larger engagement over the next six months with several teams providing medical relief in flood- affected villages in rotation.
One young member of the team, Chandrakant Patil, lost his life when he was struck by lightning while sleeping in the open in a medical camp. Because of his pre-occupation in Bihar, Singh had to lose one full term of his post graduate training and an attractive offer to work for the WHO. DFY continues to prepare itself for future emergencies through constant training and by forging alliances with organisations all over the globe.
'A snakebite and a heart attack are both medical emergencies but you need different skill sets to handle them', pointed out Dr Vivek Chhabra, an active member. The group has set up maternal and child health centres - one in Biratpur in Saharsa district and another one in a Mumbai slum. Since March 2009, the Biratpur centre has treated over 50,000 patients and conducted over 100 hospital deliveries without charging any fee. The centre, manned by two doctors and nurses each, has six beds and provides round- theclock emergency services to pregnant women. The plan is to replicate this model in other districts of Bihar and other states like Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand.
It is the dream and determination of groups like DFY which offers some hope for the health system in India.
You may have never heard of a group called 'Doctors for You' (DFY), but this group created ripples in international medical circles this past week by winning the best 'Medical team in a crisis zone' award leaving behind strong contenders such as Medecins Sans Frontieres and Save the Children. The group got the award for medical relief it offered during the 2008 Kosi floods in Bihar. The award, instituted by publishers of the British Medical Journal celebrates an individual or team that has had an exceptional impact on a crisis situation.
The group deployed 110 of its members who treated 130,000 patients over six months through 300 mobile clinics, district hospitals and camps.
Interestingly, this group of mostly young doctors and medical students from government hospitals and medical colleges was born out of a necessity in August 2007.
It is not a typical NGO looking for opportunities for social work. During the monsoon season, government hospitals face shortage of blood and platelets when they are flooded with cases of malaria and dengue. In order to deal with such shortages, some medicos in Mumbai formed a group to promote voluntary donation of blood and platelets.
When Bihar faced the flood situation, Dr Ravikant Singh - who hails from the state and had founded the voluntary blood donation group - decided to take a small medical team there in August 2008. This slowly grew into a larger engagement over the next six months with several teams providing medical relief in flood- affected villages in rotation.
One young member of the team, Chandrakant Patil, lost his life when he was struck by lightning while sleeping in the open in a medical camp. Because of his pre-occupation in Bihar, Singh had to lose one full term of his post graduate training and an attractive offer to work for the WHO. DFY continues to prepare itself for future emergencies through constant training and by forging alliances with organisations all over the globe.
'A snakebite and a heart attack are both medical emergencies but you need different skill sets to handle them', pointed out Dr Vivek Chhabra, an active member. The group has set up maternal and child health centres - one in Biratpur in Saharsa district and another one in a Mumbai slum. Since March 2009, the Biratpur centre has treated over 50,000 patients and conducted over 100 hospital deliveries without charging any fee. The centre, manned by two doctors and nurses each, has six beds and provides round- theclock emergency services to pregnant women. The plan is to replicate this model in other districts of Bihar and other states like Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand.
It is the dream and determination of groups like DFY which offers some hope for the health system in India.
