heart ailments

remote villages

Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram

Parbhani district

Marathwada

Balaji Hospital

Indian Association of Paediatric Surgeons

Narayana SRCC hospital

The children, all aged under 14, are from some of the mostin the state.Eight thousand children under the age of 14 from remote villages in the state suffering from life threatening heart ailments will get a second shot at life this year.Identified in an intensive survey conducted under the government-sponsored– a state-wide screening and early intervention programme – the children will be operated upon by the city and state’s top doctors at some of the best hospitals, both private and public.The state government has set itself a target of conducting all 8000 surgeries by the end of this year and the first batch of these children from villages ofinarrived in Mumbai this week. The deadline may sound ambitious, but it is important for the government to act fast in this case – doctors don’t give at least half of these kids more than a year without urgent medical intervention.Apart from the numbers and the stiff deadline the state has set itself, what is remarkable is that the families of a large number of these kids were not aware of their condition before doctors arrived in their village schools and screened students for heart ailments. Those who knew, did not have the wherewithal to get them operated.A paediatric heart surgery in a government hospital costs Rs 1.5 lakh, while in a private hospital it can set one back by Rs 10 lakh. The other problem being that paediatric surgeries are a highly specialised skill and are conducted at only at a handful of hospitals in the state.Bhakti Shinde, 10, has two holes in her heart. Her family has known of her condition for nine years now. Her father, Dattrao Shinde, a resident Kakode Nagar in Parbhani district and a marginal farmer with an income of Rs 200 a day, left her to her fate after he was told by doctors at a hospital in Aurangabad that she would have to be taken to Mumbai. He was also told the surgery would cost at least Rs 4 lakh. “The health camp at her school last month was a god-send. We have now been brought to Mumbai. I am told she will operated upon a few days’ time and that she will be fine,” said Shinde.While two kids of the first batch of 20 were operated upon last week at, the government has opened talks with private-charitable hospitals to share the burden. Government-run KEM and Sion hospitals are the other two places in the city where surgeries will take place.Last month, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had a meeting with theand several top doctors have volunteered to take part in the programme.Additional Director, health services (family and welfare), Dr Archana Patil said a team of 1100 officers and 64 civil surgeons in 32 districts is coordinating to conduct camps in schools. “Focus is on identifying children who need urgent medical intervention. These kids are being admitted to KEM, Sion, Balaji, and,’’ she said.While some of the surgeries could be funded under the state’s popular medical insurance scheme Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Jan Aarogya Yojana, the chief minister’s fund too will be used wherever necessary. Some of the Tata trusts too have agreed to fund the surgeries.Dr Suresh Joshi, senior Cardiothoracic Surgeon, said, “I am glad that the current CM is keen about getting paediatric heart surgeries done as soon as possible. Last month I operated on four such patients for whom the money was sanctioned without any delay from the CM’s relief fund. Why would private hospitals hesitate if the government has paid half the money? Even we want to help these poor kids.”