Fund Raising Dinner

The members of SAHI decided to have a fund raising dinner to serve two purposes. One was that it would help us create awareness among the people about the existence of such an organization and it would also help us raise some much needed funds. After much deliberation it was decided to have the dinner on 6th Feb ’05 at the lawns of Apollo Hospital. It was decided to price the tickets at Rs. 1500.00 per person and print 500 tickets. Members were given the tickets according to their capacity to sell.

The dinner was preceded by a brief meeting compered by our treasurer Ms. Sunita. Our vice- president Mr. E.C. Vinay Kumar, in his introduction, spoke about the aims and objectives of Sahi and our vision for the future. He also enlightened the gathering about how we intended to accomplish our goal which is to address the problem of hearing impairment especially among the poorest of poor with no access to medical facilities.

The introduction was followed by a presentation on the Apollo Cochlear Implant by Dr. Rambabu which gave us an idea about what sort of disability could be cured through this surgery, the costs involved, the success rate etc. This was followed by testimonials by patients who had successfully undergone this program.

Ms. Sangeeta Reddy, Executive Director, Apollo Hospitals and also President of Sahi gave the concluding address. In a brief speech she managed to give a big boost to our morale by explaining how small deeds could make a big difference. It certainly inspired the members of SAHI to do better as it also motivated the rest of the gathering to donate generously for a worthy cause. Several guests came forward to make generous contributions.

Ms. Bhageerathi our vice President and her husband Mr. Diwakar Reddy, M.D. R.R. Stones were invited on to the dais and felicitated by Mr. Vinay Kumar as they had taken a lot of trouble to motivate people to contribute, apart from making a significant contribution themselves.

Dr. P.S. Reddy and his team worked diligently to create a website for SAHI and this was inaugurated by Master Rushin, the youngest cochlear implantee present on the occasion.

Dr. P.S. Reddy then proposed a vote of thanks after which the guests were invited to have dinner.

Camp Conducted by SAHI at Veerapunayunipalli, Kadapa District

On the invitation of a local person, Mr. N. Prabhakar Reddy, Principal- GVNPSK Junior College, we decided to conduct our second camp at Veerapunayunipalli village, Kamalapuram Mandal, Kadapa dist. Six ENT specialists, Dr. Vinay Kumar, Dr. Ram Babu etc. along with the audiology team headed by Mr. Srinivas attended this camp.

The spade work for the camp was done by Mr. Prabhakar Reddy. He arranged for the display of banners and had the letters sent by SAHI to all the educational institutions within the vicinity. As a result 140 patients had registered themselves for consultation at the camp.

Arrangements for pick up and stay of the members were taken care of by Mr. Prabhakar Reddy with the help of other locals. The camp began at 9 AM and went on till 6 PM. News of the camp spread by word of mouth and more patients followed and by the end of the day more than 200 patients were examined at the camp. Among these 26 patients were given hearing aids and 17 patients were asked to come to Apollo, Hyderabad-3 patients for further investigations and 14 patients for surgeries.

The members of SAHI were very pleased at the way the camp was conducted and at the number of patients who were treated. It was also very satisfying to see that a number of people who attended the camp were from very remote areas with no access to medical help. Some of the patients were suffering from serious problems which in some cases could have been even life threatening. All in all in was a very rewarding experience.

SAHI Ear Care Camp at Mahabubnagar

SAHI ear care camp was held at Mahabub Nagar on 24 th April 2005 under the leadership of Dr. Rambabu MS (ENT) 5 other ENT Specialists and 4 audiologists participated in this day long camp.

275 patients with deafness availed the services at the camp of this 145 patients had audiometry done, 15 patients were fitted with Hearing aids and 12 patients were selected for various ear surgeries.

Camp at Jammala Madugu, CSI Campbell Hospitals on 03-07-2005

SAHI conducted an Ear Camp at Jammalamadugu in collaboration with ‘The Association of Otolaryngologists of India (AOI). 228 patients with ear problem screened & checked up with audiometry. 29 hearing aids distributed, 16 patients were selected for various kinds of surgery to improve hearing and were done successfully at Apollo Hospitals.

SAHI and Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisations conducted Camp at Mangalamcheruvu Putta Parti Mandalam, Anantapur District on 16-7-05

SAHI participated in the medical camp conducted at Mangalam Cheruvu by Sri Satya Sai Seva Trust near Puttaparthy. 150 patients were checked up for hearing problems 84 Audiograms were done 3 hearing aids distributed.

Camp at Bontapally Village, Puttaparthy Mandalam, Anantapur District on 17-7-05

SAHI participated in the medical camp conducted at Bontapally by Sri Satya Sai Seva Trust near Puttaparthy. Above 80 Audiograms were done 4 hearing aids distributed.

Camp at Bhadrachalam

SAHI conducted an Ear Camp at Bhadrachalam, above 145 patients with ear problem screened & checked up with audiometry. 16 hearing aids distributed, 13 patients were selected for various kinds of surgery to improve hearing and were done successfully at Apollo Hospitals.

Camp at Tiruvur, Krishna (Dt) on 16-10-2005

SAHI conducted an Ear Camp at Thiruvur, with the help of Late. Sri Kanchi Ramasatya Prasad Charity Trust. Above 650 patients with ear problem screened & checked up with audiometry. 29 hearing aids distributed, 52 patients were selected for various kinds of surgery to improve hearing and were done successfully at Apollo Hospitals.