Mumbai: About 20 women are seated on the floor with a diary in their hands listening to a gentleman seated in the middle. Vivek Pandey, 24, who is visually impaired, recites the lyrics of the Hindi film song, ‘Itni shakti humey dena daata’, with emphasis on diction. With a clap, they start singing, and their confidence grows as the song proceeds.
This is how the day begins at the wellness centre run by the non-profit, Sanjeevani… Life Beyond Cancer, and the women are cancer survivors, who come here thrice a week to understand there is more to life than the disease.
“We are convinced cancer needs to be fought more from within,” says the founder, Ruby Ahluwalia. The wellness centre provides psychotherapy, talks on nutrition, teaches the Emotional Freedom Technique, yoga, meditation, and conducts music and dance therapy free of cost, “so cancer survivors can lead a better quality of life post-treatment and hopefully there is a reduced chance of recurrence.”
Joanita Figueiredo, who takes sessions on nutrition and reflexology, says the centre helps patients deal with the side-effects of medicines and equips them with skills to take responsibility of their own health, besides building their immunity systems.
Ms. Ahluwalia, an IRAS (Indian Railways Accounts Service) officer of the 1986 batch who is posted as Financial Advisor & CAO (G) of Central Railway, felt the need to start the centre after being diagnosed with stage-III breast cancer in 2009.
She says, “Having undergone the emotional stress, financial drain, physical pain, I decided to make the journey for others fighting cancer less strenuous.” After completing her treatment, she started the trust under the guidance of a board of mentors. A friend who was moved by the concept gave them the space to run the centre in 2012.
R. Laxmi, a volunteer since the centre’s inception, says, “At Sanjeevani, our aim is to work towards prevention and early detection of cancer and provide care, counselling and rehabilitation to persons fighting cancer with focus on navigating them towards wellness using various activities.”
Survivors’ contribution
With an aim to encourage patients to complete their treatment and keep a positive outlook towards life, the centre has initiated Sanjeevani Counselling and Rehabilitation Centres (SCRC) at Super Specialty Cancer Hospitals designated as regional cancer hospitals. SCRCs run at cancer hospitals in Mumbai, Nagpur, Wardha, Ahmedabad, Bikaner, Jaipur, Kolkata and Puducherry. “Our aim is to reach to all the regional cancer hospitals in the country,” says Ms. Ahluwalia. The centres are manned by Sanjeevani counsellors, most of whom are rehabilitated cancer survivors. “Those who undergo the trauma and the challenges are able to understand the plight of other patients much better.”
Anuragini Menon (27), a cancer survivor who volunteers at the centre, says her aim is to help others so they do not face challenges she faced, due to lack of knowledge and emotional support. “At these centres we try to provide emotional, psychological and logistical support to patients and their relatives; navigate them through the treatment process; encourage them to adhere to medical advice through even post treatment and facilitate better and meaningful interaction between patients and doctors.”
Sheikh Shanu (23), another cancer survivor who has been volunteering with Sanjeevani for the past two years, says her desire is to motivate cancer patients and tell them they can lead a positive and cheerful life. “It is this outlook that will help them sail through the difficult period.”
The volunteers’ efforts seem to have had an impact. Ruchira Sawant, who comes all the way from Kalyan to attend sessions at the centre, says, “The diet chart and the talks on nutrition have helped me immensely. In fact, now I counsel others about a ‘balanced nutritious diet’. I have become positive and do not think about my illness at all.”
Shobha Shinde says the sessions have been the “best” she has ever attended. “All of us enjoy the dance and music therapy sessions. I had never danced before but now I just look for an opportunity to shake a leg.” Pushpalata, who comes from Kurla, says, “In my life there was never any ‘me’ time. When I come to the centre, I forget the world and live for myself. The two-hour session rejuvenates me.”
Special courses
With an aim to train cancer survivors become cancer care givers, Sanjeevani, in collaboration with Tata Institute of Social Sciences and Tata Memorial Centre, Parel, started a four-month course in 2015.
The curriculum is designed to focus on empathetic, emotive, nutritional, paramedical, physio-therapeutic and spiritual aspects of oncological care. It aims at skill development of survivors, resulting in rehabilitation, and to produce a pool of professionally trained and certified care givers for cancer patients. “Those who teach the course have been given an orientation to the curriculum as developed by TISS. In particular, they are expected to teach through participatory methods,” says Prof. (Dr.) Nasreen Rustomfram, Chairperson, Centre for Lifelong Learning, TISS. Prof. Rustomfram teaches the course in ‘Becoming an Effective Care Giver’. “This course encourages the caregiver to look after themselves by managing their own stress and burnout. Only a healthy and happy caregiver can look after a patient with care and compassion.”
The trainees get one month of theoretical knowledge at TISS after which they are given practical training at Tata Memorial Centre for three months. “While the hospitals give the best treatment for cancer patients, they and their care givers need much more: guidance, psychological and emotional support, and better understanding. The volunteers of Sanjeevani are doing exactly that. We hope every cancer hospital in the country has care givers in future,” says Dr. Rajiv Sarin, Director, ACTREC, Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai.
The third batch of the course will begin in June 2017, and the centre plans to roll it out at other centres too. The first outstation course is being rolled out in Ahmedabad in July, says Ms. Ahluwalia.
Sanjeevani also conducts cancer awareness and detection camps where it screens short documentaries, distributes pamphlets and conducts seminars, walkathons and bike rides to reflect the ‘I Can’ spirit.
Most of the activities are conducted with the help of Corporate Social Responsibility funds. “Individual donors can also support the cause,” says Ms. Ahluwalia. Sanjeevani’ has 20 paid volunteers and 200 non-paid volunteers across six States.
Snapshot:
Founder: Ms. Ruby Ahluwalia
Started in: 2012
Helpline: +91 8691 000 800
Email : admn@sanjeevani-lifebeyondcancer.com
Website : www.sanjeevani-lifebeyondcancer.com
