Under the advocacy of Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS), doctors, paramedical staff and the Amrita Mobile Telemedicine Unit (AMTU) departed for Jammu & Kashmir on September 30, 2014 to extend all necessary medical aid to the needy patients in the flood affected areas. Sri. G. M. Sidheswara, the then Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation India, flagged off the medical team from Ernakulam Durbar Hall Ground. Sri. K. Babu, Minister for Fisheries, Ports and Excise, Kerala; Sri. Tony Chammany, Kochi Mayor; Sri. A. N. Radhakrishnan, BJP State Secretary; Dr. Prem Nair, Medical Director, AIMS and Br. Dr. Jaggu were present on the occasion.
The team of expert doctors headed by Br. Dr. Jaggu and Dr. Punith Dhar, Clinical Professor and Head of the Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, AIMS, included Dr. Deepthi Sharma, Clinical Professor, Obstetrics and Gynaecology; Drs. Chakravarthy and Rituna Medayil from General Medicine; Dr. Nithin from Dentistry; Drs. Yuvaraj Karthik and Rahul Raj from General Surgery; Dr. Sayooj Krishnan from Neurosurgery; Dr. Arjun from Community Medicine; Dr. Chinnu from Paediatrics and Dr. Lipi Madhusoodanan from Obstetrics and Gynaecology.
The paramedical and other support staff consisted of Sri. M. D. Jayan, Mrs. Ramani, Sri. Lalu, Sri. Sundeep, Sri. Ajith, Sri. Aymanam Raveendran, Sri. Gireesh Kumar, Sri. Aneesh Kumar and Sri. Jainandran. Apart from the required medicines to be given at the relief sites, the team also carried human vaccinations such as DPT, Polio, MMR and Hepatitis B. Dr. Ratheesh, the Veterinary Surgeon, along with medicines and vaccinations, also accompanied the team.
The Union Minister of Home Affairs Sri. Rajnath Singh flagged off the mobile medical team and Amrita Mobile Telemedicine Unit (AMTU) to Jammu and Kashmir on October 06, 2014 at India Gate, New Delhi.
The centrally air conditioned AMTU is equipped with satellite-based video conferencing facility and comprises of Colour Ultra Sonography, X-Ray Radiography, Ventilator, Minor Operation Theater, Delivery Room facility, Electro Cardiography, Light Microscopy, Digital Photography and Bio Chemical Testing with a Semi Auto Analyzer to analyze Hepatitis B, Rat Fever or Leptospirosis, etc.
During October 08-20, relief medical camps were conducted at various Government Taluk Hospitals and at many flood affected remote villages of Jammu & Kashmir. Fever, cough, body pain and back pain were very common in this region. Skin diseases and fungal infections were observed in many patients. The total number of patients attended by the doctors at various camp sites is estimated to be 8061. The veterinary doctor examined domestic animals, including cow and goats, which were brought to the outreach camps and appropriate injections and medicines were administered on them.
The District Collector, the District Magistrate, the Health Secretary, the District Medical Officer and the Military Officials of the region discussed day-to-day action plans with the medical team and extended their valuable guidance and help throughout the relief activities. Swami Nijamrita Chaitanya of MA Math, Delhi; Brahmachari Amit and Dr. Radha Mohan Das Agarwal, pediatrician and MLA of Uttar Pradesh also accompanied the team to the various locations of the camps and offered their valuable support.
The total number of patients attended by the doctors at various camp sites is estimated to be 8061.
On October 21, the team members boarded the Rajadhani Express to Kochi at 10.50 AM and safely reached Ernakulam at 4 AM October 23.
The flood in Jammu and Kashmir took many lives. It awoke compassion in the hearts of many people world-over to reach out to the suffering in the form of selfless love. Inspired by Chancellor Amma’s compassion, AIMS Disaster Management Medical Relief Team also worked hard to serve the needy in the flood affected areas by expressing unconditional love through their selflessly serving hands.
