Overview:

Jamkhed is located in the state of Maharashtra, India. Since 2009, the Freedom From Poverty Foundation has been working in partnership with the CHRP (Comprehensive Rural Health Project) in Jamkhed. The Freedom From Poverty Foundation has been helping the most disadvantaged for over 45 years. This partnership ensures a permanent physical presence in the community of Jamkhed for continuity of care and to ensure easier follow-up for the community. Through surgical, educational, and community-based missions, both organisations aim to break the cycle of poverty by providing access to health care and fostering independence.

Our missions operate at Julia Hospital in Jamkhed. The hospital has 50 beds and two operating rooms. Julia Hospital has basic laboratory tests and X-Ray’s. There are international surgery camp missions that take place 5 to 6 times per year. Julia Hospital serves a rural, underprivileged population and provides low-cost secondary care to half a million people. They are open 24 hours a day for emergencies and from 9am-5pm for basic outpatient care. Services are provided to patients on a sliding payment scale: patients pay what they can afford. If the patients cannot afford anything, services are provided free of charge.

Objectives:

In February 2020, PSF conducted an evaluation mission to Julia Hospital. PSF assessed areas of need based on benchmarks from a variety of international resources. PSF created an initial development plan (for the next 2-3 years).

Our objectives are as follows:

• Expand the local medication formulary

• Systematize the pharmacy, the unit medication storage, and the OR medication storage

• Implement crash carts for each operating room

• Implement protocols for the management of emergencies

• Implement tools for the administration of injectable drugs

• Implement tools for the preparation of medication required for dressing

• Review the operating room carts

• Implement local guidelines for the use of antibiotics for the treatment of different types of infection

When the initial development plan is complete, we will continue our partnership with the Freedom From Poverty Foundation. We hope to implement a pictogram system that will help inform patients and caregivers about appropriate use of medications. This project will require a longer mission commitment that will be evaluated after the pandemic situation

Team Members:

• Sabrina Sanzari (Mission Lead)

• Aurea Agbossou in (November 2020)

• Alex Aquilino Vigneault (February 2021)

Collaboration:

For the evaluation mission, Sabrina Sanzan joined a surgery team from Montreal (surgeons, anesthetists, nurses and respirologists) that were going to Julia Hospital for a surgery camp mission. She was able to aid in the operating room. Sabrina received feedback from the surgical team on the changes that would have the most positive impacts.

Sabrina worked with the hospital pharmacist who volunteers at Julia Hospital during surgery camp missions.

PSF worked with the local caregivers and the community workers to determine the best ways to aid the Julia Hospital community.

All the projects that will be implemented at Julia Hospital will have to be adapted to the practices of the surgical teams that come from Australia, Canada and Italy. This adds a layer of complexity to the project.

Future Endeavors:

There are two 4 weeks missions planned, one that will start in mid-November 2020 and the second in February 2021. Both missions will be virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic.