Protect 500 families from going below poverty line because of a Health Shock

In India, every year, 1 in 20 people (~60 million Indians) fall into a cycle of impoverishment because of a health shock. Health shocks, defined as unpredictable illnesses that diminish health status have a two-fold impact on one’s financial status through both the payments for medical treatment and the income loss from an inability to work. This forces many in India to adopt sub-optimal strategies of coping with this unprecedented financial burden, especially in the absence of a strong and well implemented public health insurance policy leading to a high proportion of out of pocket expenditure on health (65-80%). These include forgoing income, using savings, informal borrowing, using loans or mortgages, and selling assets and livestock. If a household head falls ill, family members previously not working may begin to do so to substitute for lost income and repay loans, sometimes dropping out of schools and higher educational institutes. This leads to a magnified negative impact of a health event as it feeds effectively into other forms of inequity.

Chronic diseases like hypertension and diabetes are the single biggest cause of health shocks. Timely and protocolised primary care can prevent the health shocks by managing these chronic diseases through regular medicines and diagnostics.

In the last 12-years, we have been successful in developing and operating a network of primary health clinics in the low income neighbourhoods of Mumbai. These clinics act as a one-stop-shop for all needs related to chronic disease management - from diagnosis to medicines and education on lifestyle changes. Each center serves 500+ patients diagnosed with one or more chronic diseases by providing them doctor consultation, diagnostics, and medicines. This timely and protocolised treatment keeps their parameters like blood pressure and blood sugar levels in control and prevents health shocks like heart attack ,stroke, kidney failure, paralysis, etc.

Our Impact Dashboard is as follows:

Total patients with chronic diseases: ~6,500

Patient Satisfaction: 4.5+

% with disease in control: ~65%

% who come regularly: ~65%

Total Patient Visits: 2 mn+

Patient Savings: USD 3 mn+

Cost per patient per month: USD 6 / INR 500

Help us fund the operating cost of these clinics.