Hospital for Hope -- website moved to http://www.hospitalforhope.org

Website Moved

2010-06-23T07:50:00.003-07:00

Our Vision

2010-02-06T22:37:00.000-08:00

We aim to fund the construction of a hospital in an extremely under-served area of the rural Indian state of Jharkhand, where the population is ~100,000. A total cost of $100,000 will construct and establish a self-sustaining hospital. Run primarily on patient fees, the hospital will be community planned and community operated by our partner Jagriti Vihara, a well-respected NGO in existence of 30 years.

Why is this project important?
Simply put, basic health care is not accessible. The nearest decent hospital is in the capital city of Ranchi, a 3-hour drive away on a good day, which is most often at capacity. Monsoon rains can double travel time. Cost to travel is a signiﬁcant barrier (a full day's salary or more for transportation). Malaria was eradicated from the region in the 1980s but has made a resurgence in the area. Other conditions such as tuberculosis, dysentery, and typhoid are still prevalent. Corruption and mismanagement have left this rural region with a severe lack of critical infrastructure. Public works have not been funded.

How do we plan to accomplish this?

In India, we have partnered with Jagriti Vihara, a well-respected Indian NGO established in 1975 in Jharkhand by esteemed educator Shri S. Upadhyay. Jagriti Vihara currently operates numerous local programs including a school and a vocational training center. The organization has also run a health clinic that will serve as the foundation for the hospital. Jagriti Vihara will oversee the hospital’s construction and daily operation. This partnership will bypass established interests and political squabbles and engage a committed local organization with a proven record of serving the local community.

Who are we?
Our team, based in the US, has visited Jharkhand over several summers. There, we witnessed the remarkable work Jagriti Vihara has accomplished in this severely neglected region of India. For the past nine years, we have honed project management skills at Toyota, practiced collaboration and innovation at Google, and have studied at some of the nation's top academic institutions. Our passion for public service has been fortified through work with underprivileged communities in West Philadelphia and throughout California's Bay area. We have previously raised funds for projects in Japan, Brazil, and India. We are committed to helping Jagriti Vihara complete this next project. We also bake cookies, write about public policy, and play tennis.

January 15: SABA-DC/AAPI Winter Happy Hour Fundraiser

2010-02-06T14:22:00.000-08:00

On Thursday, January 14th, SABA-D.C. and AAPI held a joint fundraiser at Mezza Luna restaurant for two hospitals in India - the Satchidananda Institute for Medical Services in south India ) and Hospital for Hope in north India. Over $2400 was raised for the two charities at this networking event organized by Sujit Raman, Golda Philip, and Ajay Gohil.

$25,000 raised!

2010-01-27T17:27:00.000-08:00

We are thrilled to have reached $25K in our fundraising efforts. Thanks to all our amazing donors thus far!

November 10: Fund-raiser in San Francisco!

2009-11-18T14:45:00.000-08:00

Our partner, One World Children's Fund, is organizing its annual fund-raiser on Dec 4, 2009 at the Hotel Kabuki in San Francisco from noon to 1:15pm (http://www.oneworldchildrensfund.org/Events.html). It will be an elegant event, with around 400 prominent individuals in the Bay Area attending. Lunch will be followed by a dessert reception in the foyer, where you can also meet 20 other projects doing fantastic work around the world.

If you would like to join as one of our guests, let us know. Because we are only allowed ten seats at the table including ourselves, we would appreciate much to have an RSVP by November 25.

September 01: NYC Fund-raiser was a huge success!

2009-08-31T14:44:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who came out to our fundraiser in Manhattan. Over 500 people showed up and $5,000 was raised! Thanks to our event partner, IndusTuesdays, for all their time and energy in helping make this a success.

August 15: Fund-raiser in New York City!

2009-08-18T14:41:00.000-07:00

Details:

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

7:00pm till 1:00am

Hudson terrace

621 West 46th Street (b/ 11th & 12th Ave)

New York, NY

In partnership with Indus Tuesdays: http://www.industuesdays.com.
More at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=121093738609&index=1

Health initiatives update from JV India

2008-07-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

Dear friends and supporters,

We wanted to highlight the need for health services -- the clinic operated by Jagriti Vihara(JV) is currently not able to function as planned for lack of funds. We began a strong internal discussion among the US team and sought input from JV in India. We emerged feeling the need for good quality health care is stronger than ever and committed to helping JV.

The answers to our questions follow, and we hope you will find them inspiring and informational, as we did:

1. What are the health problems in the area?
(specific statistics would be helpful)

Ans.: The beneficiaries of the proposed project ( hospital for hope) belong to the remote villages of the two Blocks, Burmu and Chandwa in the districts of Ranchi and Latehar respectively. The total population of these two Blocks is about 200 thousand out of which about 100 thousand people living in the neighborhood of Jagriti Vihara are sure to benefit directly from our services.

The actual and obvious health problems are created by diseases such as Malaria, Dysentery, Diarrhoea, Tuberculosis and Typhoid.

2. Why is the health centre not currently running?
Describe background, your thoughts on the impact to the community, your reflection for the hospital plan.( -earlier JV said: - clinic started 20 yrs ago, small clinic, now doing health tents/camps, need the clinic/lab)

Ans.: Our Health Centre ( a tiny clinic) has not been running as a hospital for lack of funds but it has been organizing health camps with the support of voluntary services rendered by some doctors and nurses from both Ranchi and Lathehar districts. We are thankful to some doctors and pharmacies who have generously donated samples of medicines received by them.

3. Can you describe the health camps in more detail?
-earlier JV said: health camps: Drs. come, malaria camp, etc., up to 300 patients

Ans.: Thus far our small clinic has been functioning only as a centre for holding camps for treating patients suffering from the diseases mentioned above.

In addition to these health camps a few eye camps were also organized with the support of Doctor Shanti Prakash and Dr. Gopal, both from Ranchi .These two doctors are willing to help us even in the future. A few more doctors from Ranchi who have visited our organization have promised to help us from time to time if our small clinic develops its infrastructure. Obviously the infrastructure of the clinic has to be developed and at the same time a couple of sufficiently paid resident doctors assisted by well trained staff will be needed to run the proposed hospital. The project plan which has been sent to you explains the minimum need.

4. How will the hospital sustain itself? What will the sources of funding be?

Ans.- The hospital will sustain itself exactly as our organization, Jagriti Vihara, which is sustained by generous supports and contributions from individuals and organizations concerned about the suffering of the people. We have to make efforts to get more and more people interested in our work.

We intend to prepare different categories of patients considering their financial status such as: 1. beneficiaries existing below the poverty line – destitute will not pay anything 2. marginal farmers or wage earners – will pay affordable registration fee 3. well to do beneficiaries – will pay (a) Registration fee (b) the cost of treatment including medicines etc. We have already discussed these ideas in village committee meetings and people have unanimously agreed to cooperate with us.

5. What is the strongest need for healthcare--clinic or hospital or both? Why?

Ans.: We aim at establishing a hospital with accommodation for some indoor patients. Hospital will include a clinic and a pathological lab. Considering the failure of the present system of healthcare run by unqualified rural practitioners prescribing medicines only by guessing diseases, a pathological lab as well as a few qualified doctors are the dire need felt in our region.

-Jagriti Vihara information group

Recognizing the Hospital for Hope Supporters

2008-07-15T14:10:00.000-07:00

We are building a community around Hospital for Hope -- thank you to everyone who has supported us. Below is an incomplete list in the order of donations to recognize those who made a financial contribution. We welcome ANY and ALL support.

• Abby Williamson
• Adam Lesnikowski
• Amit Patel *
• Andrea Chen
• Andrea Nightingale *
• Anonymous *
• Anupama Biswas
• Aseem Sood *
• Asif Zahir *
• Beverly Reid
• Carolyn Au *
• Ed Zschau *
• Evan Parker *
• Guha Jayachandran *
• Guilherme Bernardes *
• Heitor Chang *
• Huat Chye Lim *
• Hung-Tzu Lin *
• João Luiz Carvalho
• Jonathanan Nassim
• Joyce Jacobsen
• Judith Norman *
• Julio Vasconcellos *
• Karena Slate *
• Kurt Koptish
• Lan Ngo
• Madhav Vasanthavada
• Michael Bidinger *
• Min Liu *
• Mohammed Abdoolcarim
• Nadia Qurashi *
• Patrick Barry *
• Peter Chau *
• QPC *
• Radhika Malpani *
• Rajen Desai *
• Ranjani Narayanan *
• Robert Murciano-Goroff *
• Russell Golman
• Sanne Lim *
• Sheba Najmi *
• Shila Soni *
• Stephen Chan *
• Tom Jackson
• Tyler Wolf *
• Valarie Brar *
• Van Tran *
• Vauhini Vara
• Vincent Ying
• Amit Garg
• Eric Norman
Al Camarillo*
Don Tran

* Recognizes a donation over $10.

I have climbed the tallest mountain in the continental USA in one day

2008-07-09T16:48:00.000-07:00

Thank you! For the many wishes – to me for climbing Whitney, to the team for dedicating to this project, and more importantly, to everyone helping make Hospital for Hope a reality.

With two days after the official kick-off, we have already raised ~$2,000, which is 2% of our goal. We need and welcome any financial support. If you would like to be further involved, do let us know, we have a list of suggested projects and would also definitely support you in developing a good idea that fits your time and interests: http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dg3gz6z_222c8qhpvcf&hl=en.

Balance Sheet of climbing Mt Whitney in one day:

• Exhausting. Thrilling. Beautiful.
• Photos (also embedded above): http://picasaweb.google.com/amgarg/20080709MtWhitney?authkey=JpWLbhvuqmI
• Training and taking it seriously pay off.
• Partner in crime: Tim Grow, marathonist and Olympics trial caliber, amazing room-mate for 4 years who deserves even more kudos (he flew in from Spain 12 hours before)
• 20 miles, starting at 8,000 feet, highest point at 14,500 feet.
• Total hiking time: 14.5 hours; 8 going up, 6.5 coming down.
• Total water intake: 10 quarts (~10 liters); each climber had roughly half.
• Total food-intake: 1 bagel, 1 sandwich, 7 Cliff bars, 2 trail mix bags; each climber had roughly half.
• Numerous potential injuries, including a mildly sprained ankle and a nose bleed.
• Two episodes of severe dehydration, each climber had one.
• Full-blown altitude sickness, with all its effects, especially dizziness and splitting headache.
• Walking down narrow ledges where each side was a sheer 3,000 feet drop.
• 14 hours driving, 7 hours each way.
• Respectfully conquered a left knee that has torn ligaments three times.
• Thoughts. On Life. On Fragility and Fear. On Family and Friends. On Faith and Future.

We just sent variants of this email as the official kick-off

2008-07-09T16:47:00.001-07:00

Help build a hospital in a needy part of the world that will serve over 100,000 people — where critical health services are three hours and a day's salary away.

We ask you for your support as I climb the tallest mountain in the continental USA on July 8. Mount Whitney is 14,500 feet high and I have been training diligently to do a round-trip in one day -- an extremely strenuous and ambitious goal. You can learn more and donate at http://www.hospitalforhope.com.

This email is sent with many people's dreams, tears, blood, and sweat. Please help us spread the word for this worthy cause by forwarding this message to 5 friends.

Cheers, Amit

Training to scale Mt. Whitney

2008-07-02T23:17:00.000-07:00

As I write this, our core team member Amit has been training diligently to scale Mt. Whitney next week to kick off our fundraising. Part of this story started in June 2007 when Amit's left knee ligament tore for the third time. After months in a cast, physiotherapy, swimming to strengthen the knee, he has now been running ~30 miles per week for the last 3 months.

The real challenges of this Whitney trip are the dramatic change in altitude and climbing up and down 6,000 feet in a day.

Help us prove ideas really do have the power to move mountains. There is a Donate button on the right and we welcome any support, we suggest $10.

Real Change

2008-07-01T12:00:00.000-07:00

Shivers running down her spine. Muscles spasming at the lightest touch of the water-soaked towel on her head. The village is three hours away from the nearest doctor. On a good day. On a bad day, that is, on a day when the monsoons flood the muddy road, the village is a day away from medical help. Shivani twists and contorts. She is only 10 years old. Like thousands of others her age, she has been afflicted by malaria. She is losing her childhood and she may lose her life.

Allowing human suffering is a tragedy. And regardless of constructs like our nationality, religion, or ethnicity, if we allow human suffering we are silent accomplices.

We can stop this. We can give every human being their right to happiness and dignity. We can join hands to build a hospital in a desperately needy part of the world.

The goal is to raise ~$100,000 and have an operational hospital in one year. To start, its core area of service will be 100,000 people in the region.

We have struggled to find something extremely demanding yet realistic to prove commitment, and one of us (Amit) found it in Mount Whitney. On July 8 of 2008 he will be summiting the tallest mountain in the continental United States at ~14,500 feet (~4,500 m). The trail is ~22 miles (~35 km) round trip with an elevation gain of over ~6,100 ft (~2,000 m). This will be highly strenuous -- the ambitious goal is to overcome a weak knee (torn ligaments three times) and finish within a day.

We need funds. Any amount helps, whether it is $20, $50, $100 or more, just click on the Paypal button to the left. To learn more (detailed plans, budget, timeline, history etc), check the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).

Frequently Asked Questions

2008-07-01T11:00:00.000-07:00

What is the goal?
To raise $100,000 by the end of 2008.

Who will build the hospital?
Jagriti Vihara, a secular, non-profit run by committed individuals with a track of 33 years. Of these, we have worked closely with them for 8. We have been privileged to train others to teach there and to help raise funds to build a laboratory and a library, both of which are fully operational. Jagriti serves over 100,000 people in outlying villages in a region of India which has been severely neglected. Jagriti believes that empowering people to succeed is the only way we can achieve lasting peace and prosperity.

Why a hospital in this region?
First, Jharkhand, a state in eastern India, has been severely neglected. The countryside needs more infrastructure. Malaria had been eradicated in the region in the 1980s but has made a resurgence.

Second, because there is a committed group of individuals on ground with a proven track record that can get it done.

Are not there enough hospitals there? Why not have a consortium of government and industry build them?
The nearest good hospital is in the capital city of Ranchi, a 3-hour drive on a non-rainy day. The lack of infrastructure is endemic in this region because of corruption and mismanagement. The most effective way of getting real change, and protecting it from political squabble, is bypassing established interests and working with committed people on the ground.

Can you tell me more about Jagriti?

Here is the link to Jagriti's English website.

Jagriti was established in 1975 to focus on reconstructing rural areas by motivating local villagers to play an active role in changing the social order. They believe in sustainable development and see their work as strengthening society. They believe in empowering people by ensuring they have the resources to be successful.

Through their experience operating the clinic, the intense need for a hospital has become apparent. The clinic was not able to reach all rural areas, nor did it have the resources to handle complex medical procedures such as surgery. For this, the local people must spend 1 day's salary to travel by bus to the hospital in Ranchi and hope they can be seen that day. This situation exists because the transportation infrastructure is underdeveloped and phone appointment systems are precarious.

The hospital would also allow larger health initiatives such as malaria awareness campaigns. Malaria is endemic in this area and victims suffer from alternating high fever and chills. Though it can be treated with proper medication, and even prevented with proper education, it is too large of a project to run out of Jagriti's clinic. The hospital will teach classes to reduce risky cultural behaviours and dispense preventative and curative medicine.

Okay, great but is there a concrete plan for the hospital?
Yes. Jagriti has run a clinic for many years and has the credibility and community-connections to run a larger operation.

We have begun discussion with top healthcare management experts and plan to use data collection and analysis to create the best plan possible, drawing from the lessons and examples of the world's best hospitals, focusing particularly on those set up succesfully in developing nations (read about Apollo, India). This is an important point of success for the project and we will focus on it more as fundraising gets going.

How will the hospital become self-sustainable?
Once it is operational it will take ~$20,000 / year to continue running the hospital. That is $55 / day (2,5000 Indian Rupees). Much of that total will be provided by patient fees.

How will donations reach Jagriti?
Jagriti is a registered non-profit in India and other than bank transaction fees, every single cent will reach Jagriti and be deposited in a separate account for use towards the hospital only. Jagriti was registered in 1975 in India and its tax ID (permanent account number) is AATJ-0828K. In the next few months we hope to finalize a partnership with a US-based non-profit which would allow corporate gift-matching in the US and reduced bank fees.

For the meantime, donations make their way from you to Jagriti Vhigara's bank account in India via the PayPal account linked to on this website. Total fees for the entire process are expected to be around 3% of donated funds (currency exchange and credit card processing). No other management fees are deducted (time is volunteered, software and web hosting is freeware).

Will the hospital have a name?
The naming of the hospital must be the initiative of Jagriti Vihara and the local community. One suggestion will be to name either the hospital or one of its buildings after Sameer Bhatia, the founder of Project Dosti at Stanford University. We did not know Sameer as a person but he was an important link in the long chain that has borne this vision. After a valiant struggle against leukemia, his body left us earlier this year but his spirit lives on through the many he touched and through projects like this. For more on Sameer: http://www.helpsameer.org/.

How will Amit summit Mount Whitney?
Amit is driving 7 hours the day before, then starting at 3:00am and not stopping till he finishes. In the realm of human potential he thinks it is a very small challenge but will test him. He has been training steadily, strengthening weaknesses including a bad knee (he has torn the medical collateral ligament three times).

Why are you doing this?
We believe there is much pain in the world but that what is noblest in us human beings can be more powerful. We have all served as school teachers in rural eastern India, where there was no electricity or running water and where malaria, leprosy and polio ran rampant. Despite these challenges, bold and beautiful people found a way to achieve happiness.

How can I help?
We need to spread the word: word of mouth, mailing lists, blogs, youtube, social networks, magazines, newspapers, television, indeed the full power of technology. This is not about the messenger, it is about the message. It is not an idea, but an Ideal. We aim to reach 10,000 people around the globe. Add your own touch to this message and help us meet this goal.

How did you come up with this idea?
This project has been in the works for many years. We have waited for a time when we could realistically achieve it. The project's seed was Project Dosti, a student organization at Stanford that empowers students to "be the change they wish to see in the world" through travel and service.