Integrated public health action with SOCHARA

SOCHARA is our partner in various public health programmes in Karnataka state. Here is an update  on SOCHARA’s response to COVID-19. Please visit https://www.sochara.org/covid and also look at their counselling initiative SAHAY (sahay.life) for more details about their work!

Food and rations: 900 kits of dry ration items (5kg rice, 1 kg toor dal, 1 lt oil, 1 kg rava, optionally 2 kg atta and 1 salt packet) have been distributed to 500 families including 150 pourakarmikas (garbage collectors)  in Mayabazar, Anandpuram (largely daily wage workers), Mahadevapura and Ramamurthy nagar (migrant workers). A further 200 kits will be distributed through the ‘WithBengaluru’ collective (a collective formed by various civil society organisations in Bangalore responding to food security).

PPE kits and masks: SOCHARA has procured 15000 surgical masks so far; plans to procure 500 N95 masks and 100 PPE kits are underway. There is a huge supply issue and quality issue. They are working closely with Victoria and Rajiv Gandhi hospitals in Bangalore; also they are supporting urgent needs of Kidwai cancer hospital and garbage collectors. Besides, SOCHARA is working with its own partners to reach several other hospitals.

 

 

Mental health counselling service: As a response to the present COVID-19 pandemic, SOCHARA has come up with an initiative called ‘SAHAY– www.sahay.life” in order to provide mental health counselling services for people who are affected by the present situation. It is very important to provide psycho-social support for those who are diagnosed with COVID-19 or quarantined, to their family members, and also to the front-line workers who have been contributing in containing the COVID-19 pandemic. Through SAHAY, they are also offering stress management sessions to frontline health workers and public servants. They would like to make it available to migrant workers who are under distress.

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