The £1,000 donation will cover a year’s salary of a health worker working in a remote tribal community. The Jawadhi Hills in Southern India are home to 80,000 people with little access to healthcare. Friends of Vellore UK work with Christian Medical College (CMC) Vellore, a teaching hospital in southern India. CMC have trained young people from the tribal villages in healthcare to work in their local communities. These community health workers increase health awareness and bridge the gap between the local tribal community and CMC’s Community Health and Development team. With some villages only accessibly by dirt tracks, they are key to improving healthcare. The role not only helps their communities but also offers training and employment to local young people.
Friends of Vellore UK are funding 11 health workers who work to:
• Increase the proportion of women receiving antenatal care
• Increase vaccination coverage for children under five
• Monitor patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and mental illness
Since the program's inception in 2014, the number of tribal women delivering at CMC’s community health hospital and accessing antenatal care has increased more than fourfold.
