Jamshedpur, April 30, 2020: Access to primary healthcare services have been greatly desired across pockets of rural India. The current COVID-19 pandemic has significantly added to this need, with governments calling for lockdowns across the country.
At Tata Steel Foundation (TSF), the Health team has ensured that the deficit of medical treatment among rural communities is capped through the incessant call to duty by its ecosystem of Mobile Medical Units (MMU). The movement restrictions have given space for two MMUs to currently move to 24 villages near Jamshedpur to ensure people receive treatment and medication regularly.
“The primary health centre services provided by the government are static by its nature of operations. We are mostly dependent on the MMUs for medical consultations. With the ongoing pandemic scenario, things have gone worse. So, access and availability of services at doorstep has been the need of the hour, and the TSFMMU service comes in at the right time,” says Sankar Kumar Tiwary, from Patamda block.
The services include free diagnosis and checkup, treatment, counselling, health, education and awareness to villagers and students. Besides, the team also ensures that the referral cases get treatment at the nearest government hospitals within the shortest time possible.
“As doctors, it is our duty to ensure that the right kind of information reaches people and during such time the role deepens significantly. A lot of people are panicking even if they witness the slightest symptoms of common cold and such issues needs to be addressed patiently,” said Dr Tanmoy Biswas who has been a part of the MMU project since the last two years.
Since the lockdown, more than 2000 people have been reached out to through the MMUs.
“These days, the major categories of disease patterns include non-communicable diseases (NCDs), followed by skin and paediatric issues. Also, we have been receiving a number of queries regarding the myths related to COVID-19 and its implications,” says Mr Niloy Mitter, Head (Health), Tata Steel CSR.
Tata Steel stands in solidarity with its communities at this time of unprecedented duress, and hopes to reach out meaningfully to its communities as and how the situation emerges.
