Hospital welfare society

Over the past few days I have been very fortunate to be a guest of the Mirani household. The Mirani's are the parents of my classmate Anshuman and they live in Rohini in New Delhi. They are a very giving family and this is evidenced through their opening their home to me during my visit in addition to their kindness they show by being part of the Hospital Welfare Society. This society is a long standing society in New Delhi, it was founded in 1947 by the Health Minister of India with the aim of extending support to the underprivileged and sick in the wake of the traumatic partition experience. Its work has been carried out since its inception by a group of empowered women from diverse backgrounds. Some of the work they do includes: - Counselling patients and families in an effort to help them get the services they requires and enable them to communicate well with the medical staff - Providing medicines and financial assistance particularly to cancer suffers who face high and prolonged costs related to their treatments - Caring for burn victims by giving them protinex and milk to ensure they receive the nutrients necessary for healing. Burn cases are common in India, especially amongst women who do most of the cooking and water boiling which are activities with high risks for burns. - Supporting orthopaedic patients by providing wheelchairs and other orthopaedic devices. These devices help patients live meaningful and productive lives in the wake of a devastating injury. Not only does the society provide support to the sick, they recognize the importance of the medical staff. In an effort to ensure that patients continue to get comprehensive care, they offer daycare like services to the medical staff to ensure that mothers and fathers have access to child care facilities so they can continue to work and provide the necessary care to the sick. This society doesn't receive any funding from the Government and all the volunteers give their time and effort selflessly to their country folk. I enjoyed hearing of Anshuman's mother's involvement in this society, she spoke passionately about being able to help others and make a difference. Although she only started volunteering last year, it is heartwarming to know that there are people like her who are recognizing the importance of helping improve the health of the marginalized.