Abha Seva Sadan Multitherapy Charitable Health Centre (ASSMCH) located in Kashijharia village, Jharkhand State, has been offering treatment in Acupuncture, Homeopathy and Allopathy (Western medicine) since May 2005. Recently physiotherapy was added. In 2009, 11,035 patients were treated with an average of 919 patients treated per month and 44 the highest number in one day.
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Mother’s Day nutrition seminar for women – Parents of disabled children learn stretching techniques
Physiotherapy services were provided once a week, but now with overseas sponsorship we are able to offer them 3 days a week. The treatment helps rehabilitate children suffering from cerebral palsy as well as many adults with arthritis and degenerative disease. 90-95% of the villagers suffer from chronic malnutrition, which contributes to their health problems.
We are expanding our educational programs which help break the vicious cycle of disease due to poor nutrition and unhealthy food habits. We continue to have weekly screenings of our nutritional education video (which is a comedy drama) for 100-300 villagers. The video teaches how to overcome vitamin deficiencies by consumption of the green leafy vegetables growing freely in their surroundings, thus preventing high doctor and pharmacy bills.
Every year during World Nutrition Week (Sept 1-7), we organize special nutritional educational programs. In the clinic this past year, we partnered with the NGO CARE to hold an interactive talk on how to recognize and overcome malnutrition, followed by an indoor screening of our nutritional video. Then our staff demonstrated how to prepare several nutritious as well as delicious dishes which were served to all attending villagers. There was also a presentation on the nutritional benefits of a herbal garden and how to utilize herbs as food supplements.
A special program demonstrated the benefits of green herbs and leafy vegetables to 100 high school students.
In February of this year we held camps in our clinic for those with handicaps. We have, along with another NGOs, been working with the poorest villagers in helping them receive financial aid that is available, after proper applications have been submitted. The process is very difficult for the average villager. Now more than 400 handicapped villagers have been seen and registered by doctors.
The monsoon season is the busiest due to the planting of medicinal herb gardens. There are a total of 70 herb varieties in the medicinal herb garden and 22 in the nutritional herbal garden.
6 solar panels were recently purchased which can provide for half our energy needs. We have purchased 5 additional panels for use on our clinic roof. This has ensured a certain amount of electricity for the clinic when the state-provided electric goes out.