Smile Foundation has partnered with Clarivate Plc, a global leader in providing trusted information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation, to support the launch of a Smile on Wheels mobile healthcare unit in Delhi.
Through the partnership, Clarivate will increase access to quality primary healthcare services for people from the underprivileged sections of society in Delhi. The Smile on Wheels mobile healthcare unit will screen patients for various diseases, provide OPD sessions, disburse medicines and refer patients to nearby hospitals for secondary and tertiary treatment.
“We believe that as a company, we can make a positive, lasting impact on our local communities, and our world. One of our key focus areas is ensuring healthy lives and promoting wellbeing at all ages, part of the UN Sustainable Development Goals,” said Mr. Jonathan Gear, CEO-Elect, Clarivate. “By supporting the provision of quality primary healthcare services to the underprivileged in Delhi through the Smile Foundation we can make a real difference,” he added.
Smile on Wheels is a national-level mobile healthcare programme focused on serving underprivileged communities. Smile Foundation currently runs over 60 Smile on Wheels mobile healthcare units across the country. Over the next year, the Smile on Wheels mobile healthcare unit will treat around 15,000 people and screen another 15,000 patients for diseases. The mobile healthcare unit will provide primary healthcare services in some parts of Delhi.
“We are grateful for the support from Clarivate. Widening access to quality healthcare is an imperative that defines Smile Foundation’s vision and mission in the country, and we urge other organizations to come forward and lend a helping hand,” said Mr. Santanu Mishra, Co-founder and Executive Trustee, Smile Foundation.
The Smile on Wheels programme sends well-equipped medical mobile units, along with specialized doctors, nurses, medical staff, and medicines to villages and underserved communities to provide crucial access to quality healthcare services. The objective of the programme is to ensure improved healthcare services reach people at their doorsteps in unserved or underserved areas. Smile on Wheels provides free healthcare services to more than 1.5 million children and families every year across India.
Smile Foundation is an Indian development organisation directly benefiting over 1.5 million children and families through more than 400 welfare projects on education, healthcare, livelihood, and women empowerment spread across 2,000 villages and slums in 26 states.