Seasonal changes bring with them their own set of challenges. With monsoon, various diseases knock at the door, rendering little ones as primary victims. SRCC Children’s Hospital, managed by Narayana Health located in Haji Ali, Mumbai, recently launched a campaign to create awareness about Monsoon Maladies- seasonal water and vector-borne diseases to help parents with the necessary information on diseases such as cold, dengue, malaria, cholera, typhoid, Hepatitis-A and Leptospirosis. The campaign involved distributing stationery with a QR code, which when scanned allowed downloading a digital handbook that detailed symptoms and precautionary measures for the mentioned Monsoon-borne diseases. The distribution drive was conducted across private schools in South Mumbai to start with, from pre-primary up to class 6, reaching out to about more than 10,000 students.
Dr. Soonu Udani – Medical Director & Head (Critical Care & Emergency Services) at Narayana Health’s SRCC Children’s Hospital, addressing the anxiety that parents go through during monsoon said “Awareness is the key to early detection. Hence, the campaign aimed to educate parents of children who are most susceptible. Often parents panic because there’s a gap in understanding symptoms. They are unsure when to reach out for care, thus, aggravating the disease. Educating parents about symptoms will ensure timely care and medical attention to children.”
Dr. Vijay Singh – Regional Director (Karnataka Cluster and West), Narayana Health reflecting on the goal of the campaign shared, “As a child care specialty hospital, we see a lot of cases of Monsoon Maladies. The campaign aims to help allay anxiety amongst parents by providing relevant information about fever and other pressing illnesses. Parents need to be agile but not panic. The information in the digital handbook aspires to get the right healthcare without aggravating the disease.”
Highlighting the future plans, Dr. Singh affirmed that, considering the advancement of paediatric healthcare, NH SRCC intends to come up with a 24/7 children’s health line. This health line will be dedicated for parents to call and talk about children’s chronic and emergency health issues. Medical personnel will always be available on the other side of the call and will direct/guide the caller as per requirement. The calls can be followed by, doctor’s consultation appointment, video consultations, home care, ambulance support and telemedicine as per the medical personnel’s guidance and the child’s need.