The Sathya Sai Orphanage Trust Kerala has achieved a mammoth feat over the past ten years. It has, till date, given free dialysis to as many as 2.5 lakh renal patients and manages dialysis units in 11 districts. At present, the organisation supports 265 patients in Kerala. The project titled ‘Navajeevanam free dialysis centre’ was launched in 2006.
“It was in 2006 that we initiated the dialysis centre to provide free dialysis for lifetime to the poor,” says K N Ananda Kumar, Founder and Executive Director of Sathya Sai Orphanage Trust Kerala.
The first unit was started in Ernakulam. “Dialysis is a costly affair and used to cost thousands of rupees per dialysis and the poor had to bear the brunt,” he says. Ananda Kumar adds that through their initiative, cost of dialysis could be brought down to a great extent in private hospitals.
It all started when Ananda Kumar’s friend Afra started battling renal disorder. The financial constraints faced by renal patients in undergoing dialysis prompted him to launch the initiative under the patronage of the Trust, its first and only foray into the health sector. The Trust coordinates with the state government in running the units in Palakkad, Kottayam, Idukki and Alappuzha.
“Although government hospitals charge Rs 300 from the public we offer dialysis for free even in government hospitals where we manage the dialysis unit,” he adds.
Ananda Kumar says that World Health Organisation had recently asked the organisation to send in a report of their activities. The project is run solely on the donation that the Trust receives.