Apollo Hospitals join hands for one-year partnership under the MoU
Srinagar, Nov 26: World Wildlife Fund (WWF) India have announced a free treatment scheme for forest staff in Jammu and Kashmir and 14 other states in partnership with Apollo group of Hospitals in order to cure severe ailments and trauma among them.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between WWF and Apollo Hospital will entail the Apollo group of hospitals to provide treatment and recovery support for frontline staff in case of a severe medical emergency, while on field.
“This support will be provided in 10 priority landscapes where WWF-India is actively working along with the state forest departments of Jammu & Kashmir, Sikkim, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala,” said Ravi Singh, WWF-India Secretary General and CEO.
He said the partnership announcement by the two organizations covers superior quality medical treatment of patients on a first-come-first-serve basis. The services made available to the forest staff would also include air ambulance and other emergency medical rescue services.
“For other cases, WWF-India and the state forest departments involved will admit the sick/injured staff to the nearest Apollo Hospital or its franchisee at their own expense.”
This unique partnership between the two organizations will cover medical cases including grievous injury due to attacks by wild animals, fall from elevated areas (like hills or machans); accidents while patrolling in vehicles (collision, falling off etc); burns during fire-fighting operations; bullet/sharp weapon injuries inflicted by poachers; injuries inflicted by people during mob control when handling cases of human-wildlife conflict ; life threatening diseases like malaria, dengue etc; venomous bites/stings , and electrocution.
The partnership represents a significant milestone in ensuring the welfare of the frontline staff. Appreciating the initiative, Samir Sinha, IFS, Chief Conservator of Forest and Field Director, Corbett Tiger Reserve, said, “Programs such as this are essential to the morale of the frontline staff, and for their continued welfare. We welcome this novel initiative by WWF-India and Apollo Hospitals.”
WWF-India aims to explore several such opportunities wherein processes and policies can be put in place to benefit forest staff across the country. “Our frontline personnel are an important part of the conservation family, and are willing to put their lives on line to protect our wildlife. Their efforts and sacrifice must not go unnoticed. We welcome this partnership with Apollo Hospitals which will boost their morale and empower them,” CEO said.
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