We Indians have unique challenges of overcrowding everywhere, inadequate services and an endemic shortage of resources. In these times of a raging pandemic when there seems to be a scarcity of every medical service in the most difficult of times, the situation worsens. So, enter good old Indian Jugaad! So if women are having problems sourcing feminine hygiene products, there is a solution. If people are unable to access medical services, there is jugaad. And there is jugaad even in the sort of donations temples receive these days!
Dr Sunilkumar Hebbi of Bangalore has converted his car into a mobile COVID clinic. People who are housebound and unable to go out, or those who cannot afford the services of physician now have recourse. The doctor had been treating patients free at the Vatsalya Polyclinic in Sarjapur. When the pandemic hit, he decided to change his strategy.
Now Dr. Hebbi visits people in home isolation and also those who cannot afford to pay for treatment. He provides medicines and counselling and treatment right out of his car. His car is stocked with all the required equipment for measuring blood sugar, blood pressure and even an ECG machine. This is a boon for seniors who are unable to or for whom it is dangerous to step out as well as those who cannot afford private treatment. The good doctor manages to make 15 to 20 house calls a day, according to a Bangalore Mirror report.
I feel truly blessed that in times of the pandemic, I can have practically anything I need delivered to my doorstep. Some women in Bangalore are helping others out by facilitating the home delivery of menstrual products. In a country where buying sanitary pads is always shrouded in secrecy (the packet is wrapped in newspaper and then inserted into an opaque black bag), this is all the more important.
An NGO by the name of The Good Quest Foundation is one of the organisations helping women in particular. Here they have women attending to the requests and requirements of other women who may be hesitant or uncomfortable dealing with men about specific needs. Feminine hygiene products, contraceptive pills, PCOD medications etc. are home-delivered for women who need them and are unable to fetch them in lockdown times.
With the health care system being overwhelmed and unable to manage, many temples, mosques, gurdwaras and other places of worship have stepped in to help. Patna’s Mahavir Temple has been of the places of worship that have been at the forefront of helping people during the pandemic. The temple has been providing free oxygen to corona patients undergoing treatment at home. The temple lets people book cylinders online and then has these home-delivered. About 50 to 70 cylinders are refilled every day. While the temple is closed for devotees, the sick are treated with oxygenated beds and ventilator support here
.Meanwhile, in Himachal Pradesh a temple has started to accept donations in the form of medical equipment which is then distributed to those who need it. The Chintpurni temple trust encourages people to donate not in cash but in kind. People can donate oxygen concentrators, pulse oximeters, PPE kits, medicines and oxygen cylinders. The donation can be made in person or people can contact the temple website to have the equipment collected.
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