SALUR (ANDHRA PRADESH):  With the core belief that quality healthcare should be accessible to all, The Leprosy Mission Trust India (TLMTI) identified Ajuru, a tribal village in Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh – where hardly any medical facilities exist – for conducting a medical camp. A 10-member medical team, comprising three medical doctors, two nurses, an eye technician, a lab technician, and a pharmacist from TLM Salur Hospital (Philadelphia Community Hospital) conducted a medical camp in the village, along with CBN Foundation, on November 8. Around 100 patients visited the camp – with fever, malaria, neuropathic and orthopaedic problems, among others – and they were treated free of charge.

A total of 11 patients were identified for cataract surgery, and the surgeries will be performed at TLM Salur Hospital, free of charge. A new leprosy case also has been detected.

Ajuru village, on the Andhra-Odisha borer, has a population of 519. With an overall literacy rate of 10.5% and a female literacy rate of 1.6%, Ajuru is one of the most under-developed villages in Andhra Pradesh.

TLMTI, as part of its efforts to provide the best affordable health care to marginalised communities, identifies such communities in all the 10 states of the country where it has its hospitals and conducts free medical camps for them.