ADRA India

HEALTH

Health has been ADRA India’s second largest program in 2007. With a population more than 1.1 billion, India faces some unique challenges when it comes to public health. Tuberculosis alone kills over 400,000 people each year, so we are working on strengthening community level detection and treatment through DOTS, the internationally recommended TB control strategy. Despite much effort, India is one of only 4 countries left in the world where polio is still endemic.

As such, ADRA has spent its seventh year fighting for the eradication of polio, by supporting children and their communities in receiving their full course of vaccinations against the disease. Maternal health poses a threat to hundreds of thousands of mothers and newborn babies each year, which is why ADRA has partnered with a hospital to improve the antenatal care by increasing the number of births that received the assistance of health professionals. ADRA is also working to contribute towards the Millennium Development Goal #6: combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, of increasing the “proportion of population in malaria-risk areas using effective malaria prevention and treatment measures” through providing malaria-safe nets to communities living in malaria prone zones.

Our Health Program

Tuberculosis – India’s silent killer

Every year in India more than 400,000 people die unnecessarily due to the preventable and curable condition known as TB or Tuberculosis. Most of these deaths occur due to lack of awareness, mis-treatment and late detection of the condition.
ADRA India’s project TOPA (Treatment of One = Prevention for All) is working with the Government of Tamil Nadu at state and district level to battle this silent killer, which for the most part has gone unnoticed to the general public for the past many years.

ADRA India works at raising awareness, early detection, treatment and on-going support for patients and families that suffer from TB.

ADRA India’s program is training and educating these farmers on crop diversification including the adoption of SRI Technologies. SRI (System of Rice Intensification) is a methodology for increasing the productivity of irrigated rice by changing the management of plants, soil, water and nutrients. The SRI motto is “increase the yield and reduce the cost of cultivation by adopting organic methods”.

D. Govindaraj lives with his parents, his widowed sister and her two boys, in Malumiyarpettai village in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu. He is 31 years old, unmarried and works as a daily labourer at a factory located nearby his village. He earns Rs.1200 per month (approximately $1 USD per day) without the benefits of sick or holiday pay. His father is a weaver running his business at home and supports the family with an additional $1 USD per day. In total, six people live on approximately $2 USD per day.

In early June 2007, Govindaraj complained of unexplained cough, fever, loss of appetite and chest pain. Thanks to the health education sessions, home visits and other media awareness events held by ADRA India’s TOPA project, he understood that his symptoms could be that of TB. He reported his health condition to a private hospital about 10kms from his village, where his sputum microscopy test and X-ray, suggested that he had ‘Smear Pulmonary Positive’ TB.

The hospital referred him to the District TB Centre and Hospital in Cuddalore for treatment where it was confirmed that he had Sputum Negative Extra Pulmonary TB. The hospital started him on anti-TB therapy (ATT) on the 2nd July 2007. As a part of the TOPA project, Govindaraj was handed over to ADRA India field staff for treatment and the necessary follow-up. He was assisted by ADRA India’s DOT (Directly Observed Treatment) provider to administer his weekly drugs. The DOT provider visited Govindaraj regularly to provide DOTS treatment as well as counselling on how to cope with the treatment. The DOT provider and a TOPA field worker provided him with social and emotional support at times when he couldn’t go to work, due to being too weak or when the side effects of the medicine kept him in bed. Govindaraj was taken for follow-up sputum tests by the end of 2nd, 4th and 5th month of his treatment, and the test results indicated negative for Extra Pulmonary TB. Govindaraj successfully completed his course of treatment and was declared cured for extra pulmonary TB on 4th January 2008.