Santosham Chest Hospital

The 2001 Governor’s Community Service Award for meritorious community work in chest disease, instituted by the Chest Foundation of the United States and American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) is awarded to the Santosham Chest Hospital.

a) Santosham Free Dispensary at Pattabiram on the outskirts of the city of Chennai, which is incorporated, with Dr.M.Santosham Hospital Public Trust provides free medications to all minor aliments and is particularlyinvolved in the treatment of Asthma. It distributes free-metered dose inhalers and trains patients in the use of them. 100% of all patients attending Santosham Free Dispensary at Patabiram are treated free of cost. Cases which cannot be treated at the Dispensary are referred to Santosham Chest Hospital and are treated free of cost.

b) Dr.M.Santosham Memorial Dispensary sponsored by M.Santosham Hospital Public Trust at Nadurveerrapattu a hamlet 45 kms from the city of Chenna with a population of 25000 in and around it where no other medical facilities are available is a quasi-free Medicare unit. Each patient is charged Rupees 2/- for a visit which is less than ½ a US cent. This fee is charged with the only intention of keeping unruly elements away. This medical center is concerned with the early diagnosis of Pulmonary and extra Pulmonary Tuberculosis and refers suspicious cases to Santosham Chest Hospital where free screening, diagnosis and treatment are provided. It is also committed to awareness of its population group to AIDS.

c) Santosham Chest Hospital, a unit of Dr.M.Santosham Hospital Public Trust provides free in-patient and outpatient treatment to the poorer strata of the society in and around the city of Chennai. 25% of the patients are treated free of cost. It also treats patients referred from Santosham Free Dispensary pattabiram and Dr.M.Santosham Memorial Dispensary at Naduverapattu free of cost.

Purpose of Services

To detect early cases of respiratory diseases like Asthma and pulmonary Tuberculosis and provide treatment before irreversible changes occur.

Impact

All the health institutions under our care would target a population of about 2 million people who are below the poverty line, 50% of them being in extremes of life (below 6years and above 65 years) evenly distributed by gender mostly belonging to scheduled caste and backward class of society.

Role of Dr.Ravi .T.Santosham

The role of Dr.Ravi.T.Santosham is totally voluntary and it involves his personal time (i.e., Santosham Chest Hospital everyday, Santosham Free Dispensary at Pattabiram one hour every week and Dr.M.Santosham Memorial Dispensary at Naduveerapattu one hour every fortnight.)

Our project is totally committed to rendering medical care to the poorest of the poor in areas where medical help is totally unavailable. Recognizing the fact that the incidence of Tuberculosis and allergic respiratory disorders are increasing, our project concentrates on these two areas with then back up of Santosham Chest Hospital. Awareness towards AIDS is an integral part of our project.

(b) The results that we have produced in our projects by way of well being and satisfaction of our patients, a great degree of improvement in community health and changes in the quality of life in our target community will be an inspiration to other volunteers for replication in their countries.

(c) Since all the projects come under the ‘Dr.M.Santosham Hospital Public Trust’, they will be definitely sustained by the trustees.

(a) As there are no medical facilities in and around Naduveerapattu with a population of 25,000 our project is the only provider of health services.

Asthma is a very ill understood disorder. Our project in Pattabiram provides Asthma care and education regarding the disease and its control in a very illiterate and backward society.

Santosham Chest Hospital is the only Hospital in the city of chennai which is totally committed to the treatment of respiratory disorders and since 25% of its patients are treated free of cost, many of them for whom expert medical helps provided would not have received any. Investigations including Bronchoscopy are done free of cost for referrals from peripheral centers. Even Lobectomies and Pneumonectomies have been performed free of cost.

(b) On an approximate basis since inception of the project (5years) more than 100 lives have been saved, 5000 cases of Asthma treated and more that 2000 cases of Tuberculosis identified, and treated.