On a personal visit to Vishakapatnam, I decided to check out the listed Hospice in the city. I was directed to the ‘American hospital’, where the hospice was located on the ground floor, in a separate annexe. I was duly impressed by the cleanliness of the hospital as a whole and the simplicity of the hospice. It had four beds and the unit was maintained and run by Dr. N. S. Raju, who was also the Managing trustee of a NGO, Age Care Foundation.

I found Dr. Raju to be a very polite and unassuming gentleman. He and his team have been doing a great job in providing Palliative and Elderly care services in Vishakapatnam since almost 5 years. Small units such as his are cost efficient and provide the care in an effective manner. These could be the answer to Palliative Care services in India for such models are also sustainable.

Written by:

Dr. Abhijit Dam, MD(AIIMS), FCCP, FPM, MSc. Pall. Med(Cardiff)
Secretary, Indian Association of Palliative Care,
Medical Director, Kosish
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