Diptipur, India

In May 2005, Global Ministries was instrumental in the re-opening of the Christian Hospital in Diptipur.  After almost three years without a hospital, people living in the village of Diptipur and surrounding environs are again receiving help in time of suffering and need. Two doctors, six nurses, and fourteen other medical staff provide medical care to thousands annually.  The hospital staff offers all manner of medical services (including a comprehensive Maternal and Child Health program with free antenatal care), and is able to perform operations.

The hospital holds accreditation through:

• The National Rural Health Mission - The NRHM accredited the Christian Hospital in Diptipur for service to Janani Surakhshya Yojana. The hospital is also likely to be accredited for service coverage to the neighboring district (Bolangir) in the near future.
• Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program - The hospital is a recognized diagnosis center for Tuberculosis and a Directly Observed Therapy (DOT) provider for the very sick tuberculosis patient.
• National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP) - The hospital is a reporting unit for cases of Acute Flaccid Paralysis, which is the main reporting for new cases of Polio under the NLEP.
• The hospital seeks to extend its Maternal and Child Health services by securing accreditation for the Family Planning, Sterilization and Postpartum Care programs, as well as recognition as a government immunization point.

The work at the hospital is increasing.  Located in a poor area of India, where approximately 35 percent of people live on less than $1 per day,[1] many patients are not able to pay the full amount for treatment.  Therefore, the hospital is barely able to meet its expenses and must continue to use outdated salary scales (circa 2002) to pay its employees.  The hospital badly needs a Surgeon and an Opthalmologist, but advertisements for these positions have not yielded any positive responses.

Recent facilities improvements have improved the morale of patients and staff alike. Construction of the male ward roof and the painting of the ward areas are encouraging.  The hospital is getting a new face-lift with the painting and whitewashing and also the repair or replacement of leaking roofs. 

Through donations, the hospital was able to acquire a new E.C.G. machine, a Semi Auto Analyzer, a Siemens Portable Xray, a Life Care Oxygen Concentrator, a Cautery, and a Suction machine for the operating room, beds for patients, a second invertor for the hospital, and an obstetrical bed for the labor room. 

Because of recent trends in admission rates of patients arriving in critical condition (and corresponding high rates of death), the hospital will explore the expansion of outreach programs, health education, and "more of taking health care to the villages -- at the doorstep."

Below is a list of special ways in which you can help the Christian Hospital in Diptipur, India:

• $50 will immunize three children for life against the six leading child-killing diseases: measles, polio, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, and tuberculosis (Source: UNICEF USA).
• $200 will vaccinate 400 children against polio (Source: UNICEF USA).
• $500 will provide air conditioning for the operating theatres.
• $2,000 will provide a fully mechanized laundry. At present the hospital staff must use a firewood-lit stove when manually washing the linen.

[1] http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/india_india_statistics.html