Serum Institute of India has unveiled the Villoo Poonawalla Memorial Hospital, a multi-speciality hospital set-up in association with Welfare Medical Foundation Trust located on the easily accessible Pune-Solapur Highway at Hadapsar in Pune. The hospital has been constructed, equipped and commissioned by Welfare Medical Foundation with complete financial and logistical assistance from Serum Institute of India. Present on the occasion were Dr Cyrus Poonawalla, Adar Poonawalla, Natasha Poonawalla, and Sachin Tendulkar along with the trustees of Welfare Medical Foundation.

Funded under the Villoo Poonawalla Foundation of Serum Institute, the hospital has 60-beds capacity and will soon be expanded to serve more than hundred beds. This multi-speciality hospital will offer comprehensive healthcare program including general medicine, general surgery, orthopedics, ophthalmology, urology, neurology, ENT, skin, pediatrics, and gynecology & obstetrics.

Spread across 3,800 sqm and nine floors, the hospital aims to provide services for basic health needs such as 24x7 emergency/casualty department and pharmacy, 10 bedded intensive care unit, 5 operation theatres, 3 bedded neonatal intensive care unit, a dialysis centre and complete diagnostic laboratory.

Speaking about the hospital, Natasha Poonawalla, Chair person-Villoo Poonawalla Foundation, said, "Villoo Poonwalla Foundation was established with an earnest desire to strive towards enhancing the lives of communities around us. With primary focus on critical issues such as health, sanitation and education, we hope to positively reach out to the underprivileged sections of our society. Our commitment has remained unwavering and consistent throughout the years and Villoo Poonawalla Hospital is another small step towards taking our communities to a healthier future."

She further added, “By ensuring about 1/3 of total beds in General Ward category, the hospital intends to earnestly cater to the lower socio-economic segment. It aims to bring down quality healthcare costs by almost 50 per cent for the community thereby ensuring their financial burden is significantly reduced.”

The major concerns of underprivileged sections of our society are health, sanitation and education. When all of these are addressed, only then they can be empowered for a better living. Poonawalla family has already achieved landmark success in educating and providing clean drinking water and sanitation through various other ventures. Natasha Poonawalla initiated this project to ensure that quality healthcare is made available to the masses at affordable cost.