Governor, E. S. L. Narasimhan on Friday called upon corporate hospitals in the city to come together, pool in their resources and expertise to screen the population for major diseases.
Participating at a function organised on the occasion of Hrudaya completing 1,240 heart surgeries of poor children free of cost, he urged hospitals to take up a district as a pilot project and screen it for six or seven major ailments.
“I plead, I urge you to pool in resources for the task. If you want, I will also be present,” he said.
The Governor visited infants and children recuperating from surgeries for congenital heart diseases (CHD) and said he was moved to tears by them. Making a forceful appeal for hospitals to come together as corporate social responsibility, he wanted them to take the lead in this direction.
The State has huge potential to move ahead, Mr. Narasimhan said adding, “but for it move ahead, I need a healthy population.”
He also suggested organising week or fortnight-long campaigns to spread awareness on health using different media.
In his address, Gopichand Mannam, trustee of Hrudaya Cure A Little Heart Foundation highlighted the plight of children born with CHD and stressed the need to spread awareness among parents about it.
In the last six years, Hrudaya had facilitated treatment of 1,240 free heart surgeries for poor children with CHD. “Last year, we took care of 450 children with CHD and this year, we are looking at treating 700 children,” Dr. Mannam said.
Doctors of International Children's Heart Foundation (ICHF) and others were present on the occasion.
