Help Poor Voluntary Trust, a trusted and renowned not-for-profit organisation with major operations in healthcare augmentation launched its first Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) today.
The Medical Unit will traverse the length and breadth of Kashmir to help people get an earlier and professional diagnosis of health conditions ravaging globally and locally. These include hypertension, diabetes, chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and more.
The inauguration coincided with the 28th commemorative event of the organization that has made a positive impact to thousands of lives in Kashmir. HPVT has a presence in all major hospitals of Kashmir, providing information, guidance, subsidized medicines, assistance in procedures, ambulance services, oxygen support, and more.
The inauguration of the Mobile Medical Unit was attended by members from the medical fraternity, charitable organisations, volunteers, stakeholders and many more. Farooq Ahmed Bhat, Chairman HPVT said the MMU was the beginning of extending medical and screening facilities from the organisation towards peripheries for the underserved populations. The medical unit, Lone said, will be travelling to various destinations in Kashmir, five days a week, as per qa schedule and roaster.
The MMU is equipped with an EEG, vital check-ups, bio-chemistry lab, ophthalmology lab and supplies of various kinds. He said the unit had been conceptualized 30 years ago. However, it could not materialise due to a number of reasons. The Trust promised to extend the service by adding more such units.
The Chief Guest at the event, Prof Mushtaq Ahmed Siddiqui, former Vice Chancellor Islamic University of Science and Technology, and Chairman and Managing Trustee of TAUMM Charitable Trust. He appreciated the work of being done by HPVT, and lauded the step towards preventive medicine. He said that Kashmir itself had lakhs of people who need to be screened and diagnosed on time. “A huge section of our population can be saved from diabetes, heart diseases, CKD and more with simple diagnostic tests,” he said. While giving an example, he said, how a test of a few hundred rupees, that detects protein in urine, can help avert CKD by at least 25 years, and save the family of the person from expenses of around Rs 50 lakh and unimaginable agony. He said more and more organisations in Kashmir need to step forward to make a difference in preventing diseases that have catastrophic financial implications.
Appreciating the MMU facility, Prof SM Saleem Khan, head Department of Social and Preventive Medicine at GMC Srinagar said that the facility would go a long way in early detection of non-communicable diseases. “Non-Communicable Diseases are ravaging Kashmir. The National Family Health Survey – 6 (NFHS-6) has revealed the mounting burden of NCDs in Kashmir,” he said. Providing details, he said, overweight and obesity affects 36.7% of women and 48.7% of men in J&K. In addition, hypertension affects about 18.7% of women and 24% of men. “One out of every three women in J&K has hypertension. And they are on the path of heart diseases, strokes and other diseases, if left untreated and undetected,” he said.
The day also saw distribution of food kits to families in need. The distribution was carried out discreetly, protecting the dignity of the recipients.
The gathering was informed that the pharmacy of HPVT has become a beacon of hope for the families dealing with chronic diseases and those with medical emergencies. The not-for-profit pharmacy has provided medicines worth Rs 15 crore in the previous financial year, it was revealed. In addition to a fleet of ambulances that have become the mainstay of patient transfers between various hospitals, the trust also provides pickup and drop with its ambulances. With three critical care ambulances, it has been able to save lives, especially of people belonging to the under-privileged class.
