Help Promote IHI

We’ve said it before – that we are a completely student run organization. That means we need all the help we can get to promote and fundraise for our cause. We would be so appreciative if you would post one of these buttons on your blog or website. It’s easy all you need to do is copy and paste the code provided into your website and you’ll link all of your friends, visitors and followers to our website.

<a href="http://www.indiahealthinitiative.blogspot.com"><img src="http://i499.photobucket.com/albums/rr352/justme_jeremyk123/blogbutton-large150x200.jpg" width="150" /></a>

<a href="http://www.indiahealthinitiative.blogspot.com"><img src="http://i499.photobucket.com/albums/rr352/justme_jeremyk123/blogbutton-small150x60.jpg" width="150" /></a>
You can also get the same code on the right side bar of this blog just under our email link. If you have any questions about how to do this you can email me at jkroes[at]uwo[dot]ca.

As always if you have any questions feel free to email us at indiahealth[at]gmail[dot]com or you can click the link in the right sidebar.

Thank you!!

Jeremy, Kayla, Marissa and Pranavi

An Evening in India 2010

To help meet our fundraising goals this year, IHI will continue the tradition of hosting “An Evening in India – A South- Asian Inspired Gala of Cultural Shows and Cuisine”. In the past this event has been a fantastic success featuring some of the top South-Asian musicians and dancers in South-Western Ontario.

This year we plan to build on the past success of this event by delivering and evening full of South-Asian inspired acts, food, fun and even a silent auction. We would love it if you could make it. To reserve tickets email us at indiahealthinitiative[at]gmail[dot]com or you can use the link in the left hand side. You can also call 519.854.3943 to reserve tickets.

If you are interesting in performing or offering your support in any way, please don’t hesitate to email us.

We hope to see you there.

Jeremy, Kayla, Marissa & Pranavi

The Non-Government Organizations (NGOs)

The NGOs are the reason we go to India and the reason the IHI is in existence. There is mutual benefit for both us and the NGOs. While we are there we are volunteering at each agency as well as providing education and resources to the staff and volunteers. Also while we are there we have the opportunity to learn about the culture in India, observe how things are done and hopefully become better, more well-rounded and culturally sensitive health professionals.
For this summer of 2012 we will be visiting three NGOs in India (click the name of each to be directed to their website).

1 – Families for Children

Families for Children (FFC) is a private, non-profit, non-sectarian agency operating homes that care for hundreds of destitute children and women in India and Bangladesh. FFC was founded in 1971 by Sandra Simpson, of Montreal, Canada, when she became aware the plight of children in Vietnam. There, she facilitated many adoptions of mixed race and handicapped kids to the USA and Canada, and helped raise funds and supplies for homes run by Rosemary Taylor in Saigon. Today, Sandra still supervises all the organization's activities, and runs the sponsorship program. Her work for children has received official recognition in recent years by the award of the Ontario Medal, and the Order of Canada.

This year we will be assisting by donating school and childcare supplies to the organization. While there we will provide classes and workshops on pain management, feeding techniques and wound care (all needs for information and resources are self-identified by the agency). There is also an opportunity for the OT students and the nursing student to assist in providing care to the children and mothers in need.

2- Amar Seva Sangam

Located in a beautiful valley in the state of Tamil Nadu, Amar Seva Sangam (ASSA) is literally a haven for the underprivileged and disabled to excel. SSA is dedicated to providing, rehabilitation and education to Indian Youths on its 26-acre campus which contains clinical, primary school and vocational training facilities.
This year we will be involved in a sensory integration unit in the school as well as working with the physiotherapist in the development of a training program for parents of children with special needs. We will also continue with projects that past IHI teams have started in this organization.

3 – Comprehensive Rural Health Project Jamkhed

The Comprehensive Rural Health Project in Jamkhed, Maharashtra, is an innovative community-based model of health care delivery focused on extending care to the rural, poor, and marginalized populations of the area. The project consists of a 50 bed secondary care hospital in Jamkhed, which annually treats about 20 000 outpatients, as well as many projects extended to the smaller villages around. These include mobile health teams, training village health workers, and providing various education and public health initiatives. There is a large focus on community-based care based on the principles of equity, integration, and empowerment. 

This year, the team will be volunteering at the Jamkhed hospital and where ever we can with the mobile health teams. This is the first year IHI has worked with the Comprehensive Rural Health Project, and we hope to build some strong relationships that future teams can build on.

NGO affliated with 2011 team - Lifeline Express

Lifeline Express is a mobile train “hospital” run by the Impact India foundation; it has been specifically created to address the growing numbers of undiagnosed and untreated persons with epilepsy living in rural India. The team of volunteer physicians, nurses, elders, and family members from each region participate in the running of free clinics and provision of free therapy. In addition, there is a large counselling and educative component to this project, for patients and families (removing stigmas, addressing faith healing, etc.) and also for local doctors to increase their proficiency in treatment and recognition of epilepsy. Their goal is to build up local networks of epilepsy caregivers that can provide support and relief to the many patients in need.

Donate to IHI 2014

The India Health Initiative is a 100% student run charity. Therefore we rely entirely on the generosity of our supporters to reach our goals and continue this important initiative. Donations made will go towards financing the cost of our projects including supplies, educational materials, travel and accommodation expenses.

Donations made are eligible for a tax receipt and can be made in one of two ways: donating online or donating by mail. Please see instructions for both below.

Donating Online
1 – Go to the UWO Donations page at Western Makes a Difference.

2 – Under ‘Direct my gift to’ select ‘Alternatively, I would like to direct my gift to:”

3 – Now enter ‘India Health Initiative’ in the text box and continue through the steps of donation.

Donating by Mail

Cash or cheque donations can be sent to us by mail at this address:

India Health Initiative

c/o R. Tompkins

869 Waterloo st. Apt 2

London, ON

N6A 3W6

Please make cheques out to University of Western Ontario with “India Health Initiative” in the notes section.

Be sure to include your Name and contact information if you would like a tax receipt.

We thank you in advance for your generous support in this initiative,
IHI 2014 team
Rebecca, Mariah, Jelena, and Pallavi 

The 2010 IHI Team

Hello!

My name is Marissa Van Brunt and I just started my first year of occupational therapy at the University of Western Ontario. Most of my education and experience in the past few years has been focused on working with people who have special needs. With an Undergraduate degree in Therapeutic Recreation, I have a specific interest in holistic health. Having had a brief opportunity to travel internationally and work on a community development trip in Costa Rica, I am looking forward to the array of new experiences to come. As an occupational therapist and health care worker, I know I will be challenged regularly to be creative and also to be culturally competent. Traveling on an interdisciplinary team to a country very different from Canada will likely help me to develop some very useful skills! Thank you so much for your support!

Hello, my name is Kayla Bennett and I am a first year Occupational Therapy student at the University of Western Ontario. I am an alumnus of the University of Waterloo, having completed an undergraduate degree in Therapeutic Recreation and Business in 2009. Throughout my undergraduate studies, I worked with several individuals with a variety of physical and developmental disabilities, at summer camps, group homes, and personal residences. This past summer I travelled outside of North America for the first time to Chile and Argentina. I am excited to be a part of the IHI team, to expand my knowledge and skills as an Occupational Therapy student, and to learn about health care in India through this opportunity.

Hi.

I am Jeremy Kroes and I am currently in my third year of Nursing. I entered university straight out of high school and completed the first two years of my degree at Fanshawe College in London. Much of my experience in nursing so far has been in geriatrics but I am always looking for new experiences, and ways to broaden my knowledge and skill base – I see my membership on the IHI 2010 team as a perfect opportunity to do both of those things. Global health is something that I have known about for some time, my mom works with an organization that organizes short term mission trips to all areas of the world. I have had a lot of vicarious experiences in such travel through my parents and the work that my mom does. I would love to gain some experience of my own in this important area. I am so excited to be apart of the team this year to help out a people who may not be as fortunate as we find ourselves, to gain experience in global health and to expand my knowledge of nursing.

Hello!

My name is Pranavi Ravichandran and I'm a first-year medical student at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at UWO. I'm originally from Toronto, where I completed an undergraduate degree in Human Biology and English Literature.
I admire the rich culture and diversity that defines India, have always been interested in global health issues, and strongly believe in the ability of students to collaborate and bring about change in our international community. Needless to say, the India Health Initiative was the perfect project for me to become involved with and I'm extremely excited to be a part of this interdisciplinary team this year. Myself and the other future healthcare professionals that make up IHI 2010 are passionate about supporting the invaluable services that NGO's provide to marginalized communities in Southern India and we're looking forward to the experience of a lifetime this summer!