Mobile Clinic Manager Briefings
On October 30 and 31, 2012, a joint briefing and fieldwork were held with concerned parties of the mobile healthcare field clinic projects in India and Africa. The briefing was held in the Dewas region of India.
This five-year initiative began in 2011, and after only one year, we have already begun to receive positive reports from both India and Africa. The aim of the joint briefing is for concerned parties to meet and exchange knowledge gained through their experiences in the project in each area-transcending national and organizational boundaries in the interest of providing information to enrich the activities of the respective parties as they move forward.
The joint briefing was held to bring together the regular activity briefings, which are normally performed in each area by Daiichi Sankyo and Ranbaxy and Daiichi Sankyo and NGO Plan, respectively.
活動報告会
当社とランバクシー、当社とプランで定期的に行っている活動報告を合同で行いました。
Participants from India, Tanzania and Japan
Presentation from India
A briefing on the vaccination of infants and pre-natal checkups in India and an explanation of the role of social health activists called ASHA※1
Presentation from Africa
Report on activities in Tanzania and Cameroon such as infant vaccinations, tetanus vaccinations for pregnant women, pre-natal checkups and the holding of village "Health Days"
※1Accredited Social Health Activist: ASHA means "Hope" in Hindi. ASHA are the official social healthcare activists who reside in the doctor less village areas in India and contribute to the improvement of medical treatment and health.
Fieldwork in India
We visited a remote village in India to take a first-hand look at the work being implemented there.
Medical professionals use a mobile healthcare van equipped with an examination table, medical apparatus and medicines
Primary Health Centre (PCH)
Under this project, the mobile healthcare vans visit doctorless underserved villages in Vijay Ganj Mandi and Sunwani Gopal Primary Health Centre (PHC) areas to provide medical examinations and care for newborn babies. The local ASHA also provide instructions on the importance of breastfeeding and nutrition.
Inside the Primary Health Center (PHC)
Mother of three-day-old baby who visited the Primary Health Centre for postnatal care
This emergency transport service van is registered on the government's official emergency helpline
and has transported 500 emergency cases in the last six months.
The vehicle is equipped with the basics required for emergency response, such as oxygen masks.
Mobile Health Care Field Clinics in Vijay Ganj Mandi Primary Health Centre area
Health Camp to improve the health status of adolescent girls.
Girls between the ages of 9 and 17 took part in the camp
Hemoglobin screening
Mobile Healthcare Field Clinics in Sunwani Gopal Primary Health Centre area
Nutritional guidance, medical examinations, and vaccinations are carried out by doctors.
Height and weight measurements
Mothers visiting mobile healthcare field clinic
Examination record forms
A "Healthy Baby Contest," in which awards are given for healthy children, was held to raise awareness of the importance of hygiene and childcare.
Meeting the Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA)
To share information on the results of their operations, we attended a gathering of ASHA, the Accredited Social Health Activists who are stationed at doctor less villages and work to improve healthcare conditions. They also play a crucial role in providing home-based neonatal care in our project.
"Although the parents of a baby born weighing just 900g were not initially enthusiastic about medical treatment, we managed to convince them otherwise. As a result of the hospital's care for the newborn baby, the child's weight increased to 1.5kg in a month, and it is now growing healthily."
"Using the suction device included in the first-aid kit donated by the project, we were able to save a newborn baby that was in a near-death state."
Review of the joint briefing session
The meeting and project visit in India has been an innovative forum for sharing lessons, exchanging ideas and holding dialogues with donors. I learned a lot from the Ranbaxy mobile clinic initiatives in India that will help to improve a similar project in Tanzania. Examples include the issue of promoting health-seeking behavior from school children and integrating IMCI initiatives within the mobile clinic project. I congratulate Daiichi Sankyo and Ranbaxy for their joint CSR initiatives towards improving community health, especially promoting maternal and newborn health. The primary healthcare objective is to ensure equal access to basic health services to all community members, including the poor and underprivileged, and this has been possible through mobile clinic services supported by joint CSR initiatives that provide appropriate, rational and low-cost healthcare services.
Enhancing the quality of activities to contribute to the achievement of the MDGs
As a company with a global presence, we are working towards the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and our mobile healthcare field clinic is one initiative that enables us to contribute to the achievement of the MDGs, issues for which the UN advocates a global response. We currently provide healthcare field clinic services in three countries-India, Cameroon and Tanzania-through the use of mobile healthcare vans. Daiichi Sankyo is working together with Ranbaxy in India and with the international NGO Plan in Africa.
The first joint briefing and fieldwork by the concerned parties of projects in India and Africa was a fruitful one, as they facilitated active exchanges between the participants. It was also helpful for us at Daiichi Sankyo in gaining a lot of hints for enhancing our initiatives. We will continue to work to further improve the quality of our activities, while working closely with local communities and partners such as local government officials, medical professionals and other supporters, to contribute to the reduction of child mortality, improve maternal health, and combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases.