
The basti sugar and BP clinic run by the Serving to Hand Basis at Mir Mahamod Pahadi Colony in Hyderabad.
| Photograph Credit score: Particular Association
Hyderabad-based Serving to Hand Basis (HHF) has launched a neighborhood well being outreach programme modelled on Tamil Nadu’s Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam scheme.
The initiative goals to carry doorstep Non-Communicable Illness (NCD) screening, session and medication supply, to weak residents of Rajendranagar mandal.
The programme has begun operations by three newly-established NCD sub-centres in Mir Mahamod Pahadi Colony, Suleman Nagar, and Chintalmet, all beneath the jurisdiction of Rajendranagar Major Well being Centre (PHC). These areas, house to almost 65,000 to 70,000 folks from low-income households, have lengthy struggled with poor entry to healthcare.
Every sub-centre is staffed with a physician, a nurse, and three to 4 educated Neighborhood Well being Staff (CHWs), with every CHW liable for protecting 200 to 250 households. Their duties embody door-to-door screening for blood stress, blood sugar, and physique mass index (BMI) to determine present and at-risk NCD instances. The mannequin additionally integrates a follow-up mechanism, guaranteeing sufferers adhere to therapy regimens, undertake life-style modifications, and are referred to authorities hospitals in case of issues.
An evaluation by HHF of over 12,000 affected person information from city settlements revealed that 45% of sufferers discover travelling to public well being centres each costly and inconvenient. Consequently, about 50% have been discovered to be irregular with therapy, growing their threat of issues. “Years of deprivation and weak entry to healthcare have led to poor health-seeking behaviour amongst these communities,” mentioned Mujtaba Hasan Askari of HHF.
Preliminary findings from a door-to-door survey of 500 residents, 70% girls and 30% males have highlighted the dimensions of the issue. Round 41% of these surveyed have been discovered to have NCDs. Inside this group, 43% had diabetes, 30% had hypertension, 15% had thyroid problems, 5% had coronary artery illness, and a pair of.5% have been newly recognized with diabetes. Alarmingly, almost 60% of diabetes and hypertension instances have been discovered to be uncontrolled, mentioned the info shared by HHF.
The survey additionally confirmed that 38% of the NCD sufferers have been overweight, with two-thirds of them affected by each diabetes and hypertension. One other 32% have been obese, and half of those people have been recognized with NCDs.
Past diabetes and hypertension, sufferers shall be periodically screened for a spread of different well being points together with eye problems, oral well being, kidney illness, non-alcoholic fatty liver illness, dementia, and cancers of the breast, cervix, and oral cavity, all without charge. Provision of spectacles and cataract surgical procedures may even be free, added Mr. Askari.
Revealed – August 16, 2025 08:41 pm IST