With a view to providing affordable healthcare, GE Healthcare has inked a pact with the Tamil Nadu Government to administer and manage the Banavaram Primary Health Centre (PHC) in the state.
The company's Asian-Pacific American Forum (APAF) will be contributing around Rs 45 lakh (US $90,000) for a two-year programme that will include creating a medical technology infrastructure at the clinic and training its employees in its use. At the end of the two-year programme, all equipment will be donated to the PHC.
APAF is an organization consisting more than 4,000 GE employees who have come to the US from Asia and the Pacific Islands. The forum is keen to improve the quality of life in their regions, particularly in developing countries. Their donations support GE's 'healthymagination' initiative, to make quality healthcare accessible and affordable.
The Banavaram PHC originally had a capacity of only two beds, a blood bank, an ultrasound machine, an anaesthesia system and an ambulance. It is equipped with an operating theatre and 30 beds for in-patient treatment. However it still relies on outdated ultrasound and anaesthesia equipment. It treats nearly 300 pregnant women per month for outpatient prenatal care and postnatal care and also handles approximately 50 caesarean deliveries in a month. The nearest large hospital is 50 km away.
Through the APAF, the Banavaram PHC will now be equipped with latest obstetric and other medical technologies to facilitate institutional deliveries of babies and provide advanced care to mothers and babies. The range of equipment will cover Corometrics Foetal Monitor, Dash 2500 Vital Sign Monitor, Lullaby Baby Warmer, Lullaby Phototherapy System, Trusat Pulse Oximeter, Bassinets, GE Mac 400 Diagnostic ECG, LOGIQ 100 Ultrasound system, needle destroyer, oxygen cylinder, flow meter, suction apparatus and inverter for continuous power supply.
"What GE Healthcare is doing is a reinforcement of our own objectives and we are pleased to partner with an organization which recognizes the need to step forward and help build a self sustainable approach to healthcare services," said V K Subburaj, principal health secretary, and Government of Tamil Nadu. "We hope to set an example for other states to follow. The same model could be used to develop the existing infrastructure capabilities and hence work towards the millennium development goals," he added.
The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) was set up in 2005 to strengthen effective healthcare delivery to rural population throughout the country especially in states that have weak public health indicators and infrastructure. There are over 23,000 primary health centres across India.
Private - public partnerships are critical for increasing healthcare access to the masses. Hence GE Healthcare, having partnership with various state governments, is running a number of programmes in India and Bangladesh. Partners include Manipal Hospital, Bangalore for cardiac screening in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh; Grameen Health for maternal and infant care in Bangladesh and NICE Foundation in Andhra Pradesh for maternal- infant care and manpower training.
"It is extremely important for corporations like GE Healthcare to partner with local governments in order to make a real difference in healthcare. Working with the Government of Tamil Nadu, we are confident we can reduce premature deaths, disabilities and infant and maternal mortality rates in this community," said Omar Ishrak, president & CEO, GE Healthcare Systems.