Weekly OPD clinic at Guwahati press club goes on

Guwahati: A unique weekly healthcare initiative has been taken up by a press club in Assam of northeast India, where practicing physicians are invited to the club premises for free consultations. Often various blood tests are also conducted in these Saturday OPD clinics for diagnosing health status of the journalists and their families.
The next camp, organized under the series of ‘Evening with a Doctor’ programs of Guwahati Press Club, will be conducted by Dr Madhab Rajbongshi and Dr Hiten Chakrabarty from MMC Panbazar on 13 January 2018, where the member-journalists along with their dependants will get free healthcare consultations from the physicians.
Started with initial support from Dr Jayanta Bardoloi, managing director of Assam’s well known Dispur Hospital in raising a doctor’s chamber at the club premises, the series of health camps have already emerged as a healthy hangout for the media persons. The endeavor has also helped diagnosing many journalists and their dependants with alarming high blood pressure, sugar and thyroid disorders. They were accordingly advised by the physicians for follow up action.
Until today, most of the hospitals based in Guwahati, which has slowly turned into a competent healthcare hub in eastern India, have supported the endeavour by sending their practicing physicians in rotation for the media clinics. Professional doctors from Down Town Hospital, GNRC Hospitals, Dispur Hospital, Nemcare Hospital, Hayat Hospital, Ayursundra Hospital, Sun Valley Hospital, Barthakur Clinic, Wintrobe Hospital, Narayana Hospital, Rahman Hospital, Excelcare Hospital, Sight First Eye-Clinic etc have attended the camps.

Even specialist doctors from various distinguished healthcare institutions, based in other parts of the country, like Apollo Hospital (Chennai), SIMS Chennai Hospital, Manipal Hospital (Bangalore), Fortis Hospital (Bangalore), Medanta the Medicity Hospital (Gurgaon) etc have graced the camps. They were simultaneously encouraged by the post-event coverage in both the mainstream and alternate media outlets.
It may be noted that around 90% of media persons in the alienated region remain out of medical insurance coverage. Most of the journalists, engaged with regional newspapers and news channels, earn small salaries and nominal other benefits. Hence they hardly afford healthcare expenditures and often end up depending on financial support from the government and donations from well wishers when medical emergencies strike their families.