Satpuda Foundation’s Mobile Health Unit camp at Moharli range
Dates: 9 - 10 October, 2010
Villages: Dewada, Adegaon, Palasgaon, Karwa
After getting an email from Rajashree Khalap I decided to go to the MHU camp of Satpuda Foundation. After the initial arrangements with NCSA Conservation Officer Vishal Bansod I finally landed up directly at Moharli.
Day 1:
This was my first experience of such a medical camp. We got together at Satpuda Foundation's office, Moharli in the morning. Got to know the other volunteers and the doctors along with Guddu the driver, the co-ordinator at the office. After the doctors, Guddu made the initial check of the supplies and medicines required (for which I was just an observer). Then we went to Dewada, a village nearby.
We reached the usual place where they set up the mobile clinic. Doctors, volunteers started to arrange the clinic with equipment, medicines, patients' records, etc.
After 10 or 15minutes, people lined up. I was amazed to see the discipline they had. They queued up and waited for their turn. Volunteers helped in registration, finding the patient's history record in case of old patients. Doctors examined them one by one and gave prescription. Two of the patients were very scared to take injections and one of them ran away!!
Volunteers dispensed medicines according to the prescription.
Since the villagers couldn't understand the written prescription, the envelope containing the medicine were torn to indicate the number of doses.
After two hours we wound up and went back to the Moharli SF office by which time lunch was being prepared by a lady (sorry I didn't get to know her name). We had a good lunch, rested for a while and then started out for another village, Adegaon.
Here, we set up the clinic in the front porch of villager's house. They also served us lemon tea which was very good.
Here the people were more expressive. I observed here that the female population was more (at least among the people who turned up to the clinic) and they were loud, some of them even seemed to follow the latest styles! Also many women here seemed to have deficiencies and were anemic. We also saw a Durga idol being decorated for Navaratri.
The day ended with our return to Moharli and planning the next day's camps.
Day 2:
Next day I reached the Satpuda Foundation office at 9 a.m. as planned. We had poha prepared by Guddu and left for Palasgaon which is in the core area.
We reached the village entrance and walked to the school where we were to set up the clinic. People turned up in large numbers and here they were also very insistent about taking the injection! They believed that without injections, they couldnt get better! Quite the opposite of what I had observed the previous day!!
After the camp we had time to take a stroll while lunch was being prepared. Got to see and talk to some villagers. I happened to meet three or four girls who were doing bamboo work. They told me that they have neither gone to school nor studied at primary level. I wanted to get more information on this and spoke to a couple of other women. They too had not got the required primary education. Most of them had worked from their childhood.
After lunch we left for another village, Karwa. Here we rested for a while and then started with the setting up. I think the highest number of people turned up here. We didn't have sufficient time here to attend to all as we had to leave the core area within the stipulated time.
Then we had tea in a restaurant and dispersed.
The camp duration was 3 days, but I could make it only for 2 days as the third day's visit was in the core area villages and I had to return to Nagpur by evening for my return journey. Once we enter the core area there is no reliable means of getting back to Moharli by noon, so I decided not to attend, which I was not happy about - however there was no option. The team came to the hotel that I was staying in to say goodbye.
All in all it was a very good experience and the dedication of the doctors, staff and volunteers is appreciable.
Umesh Lalit
No comments:
Post a Comment