Senior citizens never had it so good before!
Aches and pains that are part and parcel of ageing can be managed better and with less drain on the pocket, thanks to more modern facilities that have been set up in recent times at Dhanvanthri Vaidyasala on Sringeri Math Road, R. A. Puram Mylapore.
A project of the Mylapore Academy, Dhanvanthri Vaidyashala has been of great service to people from all works of life and especially to people who cannot afford costly medical tests and treatment. Even middle class people come to the centre and the number of patients is on the rise.
Two banks have been supportive in this initiative and it is due to them that this upgradation in equipment at the centre has been possible the past months.
The Bank of India has donated the biocular microscope and steriliser and the Bank of Baroda has provided the wax bath and traction unit.
This is a step forward, say volunteers Dr. R. Akila, the physiotherapist and lab technician, Prema Swaminathan.
The lab has a bi-ocular microscope now. Earlier it was a single ocular microscope. With this new machine, accuracy and precision is heightened and testing for Eosinophilia, abnormalities in the blood, urine and urinary infections can be detected more efficiently.
A clinical sterilizer has replaced the small one that has been used so far. This machine is bigger and many instruments can be sterilised at the same time, says Prema. Forceps, scissors and test tubes can be sterilized and used again.
“Only needles used for injection are disposable. The rest can be sterilised well, ” she says.
On the physiotherapy front, a wax bath and a traction unit are the recent additions here.
The wax bath is especially used to manage and treat stiffness, post fracture and post traumatic cases and helps to manage the joints, explains physiotherapist, Dr. Akila.
Wax is heated to a temperature of 40-50 degrees, depending on the patient’s condition and a lint cloth is dipped in it, squeezed well and then applied to the affected area. The wax bath has a built in thermostat that cuts off when the desired temperature is reached. This method is more helpful than a heat pad.
The traction unit replaces the earlier cumbersome machine that had weights suspended to it. This machine has in-built weights and is compact. The weight can be adjusted according to the weight of the patient. It’s a boon to treat cervical and lumbar traction and is used for spinal and muscular traction, cervical and lumbar spondylosis and sciatic problems.
Tests that are done on such medical equipment come at a very minimal cost at this place and so senior citizens seem to be comfortable in seeking treatment here.
In its multi-fold projects and events the Academy has been reaching out to the elderly and the needy.
What is to be appreciated is the fact that people like Akila and Prema are volunteers at this place. What drives these people who have to manage a career also?
“We are here because we wish to do something that can be of help to others,” is how the duo put it.
They also stress the fact that Dhanvanthri Vaidyasala is an Allopathic dispensary and not an Ayurvedic or Siddha treatment based centre. The Academy team says that while treatment is at the lowest cost possible, it would be a good idea if those who can afford it to make a donation, however small.
The centre is open from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., Sunday is a holiday. It is located at 9, Sringeri Math Road, R. A. Puram (below IOB, opp. MRTS station). Ph: 2493 9352.
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