AIG to adopt rural areas

Hyderabad-based Asian Institute of Gastroenterology (AIG), in association with Asian Health Care Foundation, is planning to adopt large rural areas in the state on a permanent basis for free healthcare in gastrointestinal diseases and also to monitor the results of their programme.

Disclosing this here on Saturday, D Nageshwar Reddy, director and chief gastroenterologist - AIG, said the proposed programme under which rural patients are given free treatment, including surgeries, was estimated to cost Rs 25 crore.

Speaking on the completion of one-year of free healthcare programme taken up in Kurnool district at a cost of Rs 2.5 crore, Reddy said their experience, covering over 27 lakh people, showed that 80 per cent of the rural population carried H pylori bacteria, which is responsible for gastrointestinal cancer in them.

"Simple precautions and hygiene can save these people from gastrointestinal diseases," he said, adding that the institute would include the aspect of spreading general healthcare awareness among people in their next campaign proposed to be taken up in Mahaboobnagar district.

Matrix Laboratories founder N Prasad, who also contributed to the ongoing free healthcare programme, and Lok Satta founder Jayaprakash Narayan also spoke on the occasion.