Tata Steel Foundation to improve health facilities in Seraikela-Kharsawan

To increase bed capacity, provide ICU beds and advanced medical equipment

Seraikela, October 13: Tata Steel Foundation today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and entered in a significant partnership with the district authorities of Seraikela-Kharsawan to provide advanced medical equipment and increase the capacity of government healthcare centres in the district.

The healthcare upgradation, to be undertaken over the next 5 years, will include government healthcare centres in remote areas where significant gaps exist in healthcare facilities. The MoU was signed between Dr Bijay Kumar, Civil Surgeon, Seraikela-Kharsawan district and Dr Anuj Bhatnagar, Head, Public Health, Tata Steel Foundation, in the presence of Champai Soren, Minister-in-Charge, Department of Transport, Jharkhand and Arava Rajkamal, IAS, Deputy Commissioner, Seraikela-Kharsawan district, among other dignitaries.

After undertaking several large-scale public health interventions during COVID19 pandemic which included setting up free COVID Care Hospitals for the community, setting up oxygen plants for government hospitals and COVID vaccination of more than 2.5 lakh people in Jharkhand, Tata Steel Foundation will now provide several life-saving and critical care medical equipment to government healthcare facilities at Seraikela-Kharsawan to benefit the citizens of the district.

Besides upgrading healthcare centres in remote areas of the district, Tata Steel Foundation shall also upgrade the district hospital at Seraikela. These facilities shall directly benefit the common people of the district who shall now not have to travel to Jamshedpur due to non-availability of specialised medical equipment.

Advanced medical equipment and hospital furniture worth almost 2 crores is being immediately provided to the district. This includes 100 advanced ICU bed sets and several critical and life-saving medical equipment such as HFNO (High Flow Nasal Oxygen) equipment, NIV (Non Invasive Ventilators), ICU Monitors, Defibrillators, 100 Oxygen regulators, Syringe Pumps, 100 cardiac trolleys, 100 saline stands and several other critical medical equipment. With the view to improve overall patient care, wheelchairs, hydraulic patient trolleys, refrigerators, several items of hospital furniture and other ancillary items are also being provided to the district to upgrade healthcare centres in the district. The supply of these critical equipment will directly increase the bed capacity in the district and contribute to better access to high quality treatment for all citizens of the district.

This is part of the five-year MoU signed between Seraikela-Kharsawan district administration and Tata Steel Foundation for enhancing healthcare services by strengthening government healthcare institutions. This includes a comprehensive plan to support the district with critical medical equipment, renovation of existing health infrastructure and building capacities of functionaries of Department of Health in the district.

Tata Steel Foundation is already working extensively in several parts of Jharkhand in the field of Maternal and Child Health through its flagship program, MANSI+, which works with Sahiyyas and ANMs at grassroots level to ensure health and nutrition of mothers, newborn children and adolescents across the State. It has also taken up capacity building of Anganwadi workers and frontline health workers to provide better nutrition and health services in several parts of Jharkhand.