A successful RAHAT camp at Dhamtari

Yet another Rotary medical mission, organised jointly by RC Yamuna Nagar (D 3080), RC ­Raipur Greater and RC Raipur ­Millennium, D 3261, with support from the ^­Chhattisgarh ­Government, was held in Dhamtari, about 80 km from ­Raipur, ­Chhattisgarh, in March under the leadership of PRIP ­Rajendra Saboo.

PDG Subhash Garg, director of the mission, said a team comprising 21 specialists and surgeons from the specialities of ophthalmology, ­plastic surgery, general surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, orthopaedics, anaesthesiology, dermatology, ENT and dental surgery, 10 interns and 10 volunteers participated in the 10-day-long mission. The volunteers included PRIP Saboo and spouse Usha.

After being received at the ­Raipur airport, the team of Rotarians were given a reception by the State government and left for Dhamtari the same day.

Giving the background of this particular medical mission, PDG Shashi Varvandkar, who was the chairman-coordination for this mission said, “Dhamtari has only one Government District Hospital without specialists for major operations and only eye surgery and some other minor surgery can be performed here. Taking into consideration the paucity of surgeons in this hospital, the State Health Minister requested us to organise a medial mission in Dhamtari.”

At the Mission School ground, a large dome (90 ft by 240 ft) was set up, with eight different work stations for registration and 20 cabins for screening patients, selection and segregation of those to undergo immediate surgery or other procedures and those to be treated as out-patients.

A whopping number of 1,883 surgical procedures, including 149 major operations, 393 eye surgeries, 106 plastic surgeries, 880 dental procedures, 35 spine-related procedures and other operations were performed at two different venues — the Dhamtari District Hospital and the Christian Hospital Dhamtari. The mission was inaugurated by ­Chhattisgarh Health Minister Ajay Chandrakar on March 4.

Doctors from AIIMS, Government Medical College, Raipur, Ram Krishna Care Hospital, Chhattisgarh, as also some local doctors, helped the visiting team to screen and treat the large turnout of out-patients.

All the patients who attended the medical mission were given free medicines, and food was served to all the patients and their attendants during the mission days. Volunteers from the Nursing College and the Florence College of Nursing, Art of Living Foundation and the local chamber of commerce, were there in full force to help in OPD booth management and distribution of food.

PDG Varvandkar said in all over 22,700 patients came for the mission, and of these about 100 patients were referred to AIIMS and the Raipur Medical College for further investigation and advance surgeries. RC Raipur Millennium and RC Raipur Greater took this additional responsibility and got them admitted at AIIMS and Medical College at ­Raipur, arranging free transportation and food.

PDG Garg said, “The credit for this mission goes to PRIP Saboo and Usha Saboo, PDG Dr R S ­Parmar (Medical Mission Chair) from Rotary Yamuna Nagar (D 3080), D 3261 DG Harjit Singh Hura, PDGs Vivek Tankha (Member of Parliament), Shashi Varvandkar, Rakesh Chaturvedi (Chairman Administration), Dr R S Sharma and many Rotarians of D 3261, particularly those from RC Dhamtari led by their President Amit Jaiswal, who worked very hard.”

The local media carried several reports on the Mission, enhancing Rotary’s public image.