Communication

D. Joseph, Health Supervisor and M. Pilavendran, Health Worker meet residents of Nattamangalam village, Mettur on 09 September, 2010

 Communication occupies an important place in our performance. The importance is to reach out to people and make them aware of an accessible health care and to prevent disability and chest infection.

The Health supervisor and his team of three Health Workers visit residents of villages, primary schools and day care centre’s at Mettur. Usually the visit is followed by a clinic at Navapatty. Duration of such visits is between 10 A.M. to 4 P.M.

At Omalur, the team approach patients who come to the centre for screening to spread the word in their respective villages. We had already conducted an extensive awareness and screening programme for school children and community in 2008 and 2009.

The team approach residents with an introduction of our centre’s and people who are involved. Accessible health care explained and how they could approach it. Early sings in Leprosy, Tuberculosis and their consequences explained to them.

Around 60 skin and general medical camps were conducted at Mettur that covered 165 villages, between 1999 to 2003. People are not aware of the change in location of centre and considering the difficulties in commuting it takes time to respond.

We have had good response from our visits this year and comparatively the case finding in Leprosy is more at Navapatty than at Omalur. Early Leprosy affects good number of women and children.  Almost fifty percent of Leprosy detection is at Navapatty from less than ten percent of 2429 consultations this year.


Spoken expression is the dominant mode of communication by our health workers. Information about health care accessibility imparted carries an official and occupational content. A message about the cause of disability that combines an emotional content, the effort carries an implication of improving health care and well-being of people in proximity to our health centre's. The activity made on foot and giving room for people to acknowledge a certain time to interact with our health workers.

Pictures on left in order of sequence;

Team at public transport stop at Chekanoor village, Mettur on 15 July

Health Supervisor with workers at Cauvery Cross village, Mettur on 12 August

Day Care visit at Gundur village, Mettur on 09 September

Team visit resident of Chekanoor village, Mettur on 23 September

A link is provided to view communication in August Clinics;

http://acwerkaugust2010.blogspot.com/2010/09/acwerk-august-clinics.html

Medical Consultations

A very elderly lady consults for pain and swelling of her knee joints at Navapatty clinic on 30 July, 2010

Medical Practitioner: Dr. T.M. Chinnaiyan

Consultations are made at Dasasamudram between 11 A.M. to 4 P.M. every Wednesday’s and two Friday’s in a month at Navapatty, fortnightly.

66 Clinics were conducted at the two center's and 2429 consultations made this year.

46 patients with Early Leprosy and 18 with Tuberculosis were diagnosed and managed at the center's. 26 Leprosy patients and 14 Tuberculosis patients are under treatment.

Mostly patients consult for skin problems, general complaints such as throat infection, orthopaedic, paediatric, hypertension and diabetes.

Patients follow advice and treatment promptly. They respond well to treatment and seek guidance in specialized management elsewhere.

A conventional method of approach in patient care still holds good. Patients respond to a friendly and personal approach about their past history and attitude. We have observed that patients approach clinics to find a remedy for their ailments  and we do not encourage an experimental attitude of hopping from one centre to another.

Prescriptions are given to each patient that includes a Lab request and advice as the case may be. Referrals are made for specialized medical management and diagnostic evaluation that are not available at the centre’s. We do sponsor few referrals who are unable to afford the cost of such specialized management.

Pictures on left below in order of sequence;

Sixty year old S. Ebrahim, a manual labourer from Deevatipatty village, Omalur. A treated Tuberculosis patient at a TB Sanatorium with relapse and Early Leprosy. 05 May

Sixty year old S. Pappa, a manual worker from Navapatty village, Mettur.

Diagnosed as Early Leprosy. 21 May

Sixty eight year old P. Narayanan, a manual worker from Manganikadu village, Omalur. Cured Tuberculosis patient for review. 26 May

Fifty five year old C. Chinnapillai, a manual worker from Nattamangalam village, Mettur. Prevention of Deformity Clinic, Early Leprosy review. 25 June

Forty year old S. Selvi, a manual worker from Nattamangalam village, Mettur. Trauma left ankle joint. 25 June

A link is provided to view September Clinics in German by Athiya Chinnaiyan; http://acwerkseptclinics.blogspot.com/2010/09/clinics.html

Acwerk Statistics - 2010

Health Centres

53 Patients from 23 Villages attended Clinic at Dasasamudram Centre on 13 October, 2010

 Acwerk Health Centre`s conducts screening in early detection of Leprosy and Tuberculosis at two Centres.

Two center's cater to the requirements, at Dasasamudram (Omalur) and Navapatty (Mettur);

1.          Acwerk Rural Health Centre

                 4/121, Dasasamudram

                 Poosaripatty P.O. (Kadayampatty Block Jurisdiction)

                 Omalur Taluk, Salem District-636305, Tamilnadu - INDIA

2.          Acwerk Rural Health Centre

                 2/4.563, Mariamman Koil Street

                 Navapatty P.O. (Mettur Rural)

Mettur Taluk-636452, Tamilnadu - INDIA

The Centre at Dasasamudram is the main centre and functions six days a week between 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. A manager of the Centre, a Health Supervisor, a Lab Technician, Three Health workers in distribution of Medicines and Registration of patients, a Driver and two Helpers  are involved in the functions of the Centre’s. The Navapatty Centre functions four times a month between 10 A.M. to 4 P.M.

Screening of patients is done by the health supervisor and lab technician after the patients are registered. They are given health education and advise to consult the doctor with their preliminary reports.

Awareness of early signs of Leprosy and Tuberculosis is imparted to the patients along with the method by which they are managed at the centre. That is, on diagnosis of the relevant condition, initial medication is monitored, their medication and schedule explained, periodical lab screening and regular medical review every fifteen days.

2429 patients were registered and screened at the center's from 548 villages at Kadayampatty Block, Omalur Rural and Navapatty, Mettur Rural this year. Ninety percent of turn out were from Omalur Rural.

Pictures on left below; 03 Nov. at Dasasamudram Registration Athiya Chinnaiyan (Acwerk Trustee) screening a Hypertensive patient and J. Elizabeth registering. Followed by screening and health education of a Leprosy patient by health supervisor on 04 Aug. At Navapatty on 10 Sept. and patients wait for consultation on the same day. The last picture shows two Leprosy patients at Navapatty being educated about early Leprosy by J. Elizabeth, on 24 Oct.

Navapatty Village is 47 Kms from Dasasamudram and quite interior when compared to accessible rural areas. Prevalence of Leprosy is  high in these parts.

Prevention of Deformity in Leprosy

Prevention of Deformity Clinic conducted at Navapatty, Mettur.

N. Lakshmi, 43 year old cured Leprosy patient being reviewed for Trophic Ulcers of digits, both hands. 

Pic.25 June, 2010

 Prevention of deformity in Leprosy: Clinics were conducted at Dasasamudram (Omalur) and Navapatty (Mettur) Cebtre’s.

The objective is to detect early Leprosy and prevent nerve damage with or without anaesthetic patches, with peripheral or surface nerve involvement, diagnose, treat and conduct regular prevention of deformity clinics. To train and educate patients in care of hands and feet and review their condition from time to time after they are cured.

Forty six patients were detected with early Leprosy this year. Most of them were Ployneuritic type and few of them presented anaesthetic patches, mostly on the exposed areas of their extremities. While twenty six patients are under treatment, all are advised to attend prevention of deformity clinics. Forty percent attendance rate was recorded even though they were made aware of the consequences if neglected. The defaulters are approached in their homes periodically and reviewed by the health supervisor.

Medicines are issued free of cost for the entire period of management under medical supervision and a pair of MCR foot wear was also issued free of cost. All patients were given food and travel allowance and after they were cured they were provided with a monthly allowance.

Pictures on left below, first five were at Navapatty Centre, Mettur on 24 March, 2010, sixth on 21 May. They were all detected on the same day and treatment started. Picture seven and eight  were at Dasasamudram Centre on 12 May, nine on 5 May and the last one, ten to show MCR Footwear to a cured Leprosy patient at Navapatty on 24 March, 2010. A link is provided to view the cinic on 24 March, 2010 at Navapatty.

http://chinnachinnaiyan.typepad.com/blog/2010/03/prevention-of-deformity-clinic.html

Leprosy Day - Cause

Leprosy Day was held on 31 January, 2010. Children at `Sudarozhi' Home, Mettur

Acwerk Rural Development Foundation

183/1/91, Plot 7a, Fourth Cross Street, Vivekananda Avenue

New  Fairlands, Salem-636016, Tamilnadu - INDIA

Phone:91.0427.2430702, Fax:91.0427.2331052, Email:acwerk1@gmail.com

· Accessible Rural Health Care for disabled and needy

· A Cause  related to community and education

Leprosy Day was initiated by `Acwerk' and held at four places at Mettur and Omalur, between 3 to 9 P.M. Food and stationery was served and distributed to the homes at Mettur, while fifty cured Leprosy patients received sari's and dhoti's at Mettur and Omalur. Forty five children at `Ramakrishna Mutt', thirty five children and ten visually disabled adults at `Sudarozhi', Mettur were served food and stationery distributed.

On 31 January eleven members of `Acwerk’, five members from `Ramakrishna Mutt’ and four members from `Sudarozhi’  participated and shared the occasion.

The children and visually disabled were very happy to share the evening with us and we also shared some of their day-to-day experiences in their respective homes.

Cause, of caring for the disabled has been our main aim in rural Salem since December 1998.

At Acwerk Dasasamudram (Omalur) and Navapatty (Mettur) Centre’s:

2004 to 2010:  248 Leprosy patients were diagnosed and cured.

At Acwerk Thangamapuripattinam and Navapatty Centre’s (Mettur)

1999-2003: 629 Leprosy patients were diagnosed and cured.

Leprosy Day has been held every year since inception and the rehabilitated patients were visited and reviewed. A prevention of deformity clinic is regularly conducted at the Centre’s.

Pictures on Left below: First two pictures from Ramakrishna Mutt, Mettur, third to fifth at Sudarozhi, Mettur, sixth at Navapatty Centre, S. Daniel-Lab Technician presenting sari to a Leprosy cured patient and seventh, J. Elizabeth after preparation of food at Dasasasamudram Centre, Omalur.

A link is provided to view Management of Disability at Omalur and Mettur; http://menacelookingyoung.blogspot.com/2010/02/managing-disability.html