Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has renewed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Prasanti Medical Services and Research Foundation (PMSRF) for providing world-class free of cost treatment to children and adults suffering from cardiac defects.
The MoU has been inked for two years from February 21, 2023, to February 20, 2025, a release stated on Saturday.
According to the agreement, the PMSRF will organise free screening camp for children at district hospitals/medical colleges or at any other suitable venue to examine, confirm and categorise the suspected paediatric cardiac cases and provide feasible diagnostic facilities at the screening site (including echo) free of cost.
It will also provide treatment to the identified patients being referred by the Health and Family Welfare Department for congenital cardiac defects at its hospitals at free of cost.
Annually, around 500 children and 500 Adults referred by the government will be provided free surgery by PMSRF.
Children aged between 3 months to 18 years will be treated at Sri Sathya Sai Heart Hospital in Ahmedabad while those in 19-65 years age group will be treated at Sri Sathya Sai Heart Hospital in Rajkot.
The patient as well as the care taker or escort of the patients will make no payment for the treatment/surgery of the patient, which includes accommodation, in PMSRF hospital. The government will also bear the transportation charges of patient, to and from the Hospital in Ahmedabad and Rajkot.
The release added that PMSRF has agreed to extend free treatment to the patients from Odisha (identified in the screening camps or referred by the state) which shall include all pre and post medical diagnosis and investigations at hospital, cost of surgery/ surgeries, all pre and post-operative care at hospital required medications during hospitalisation ICU charges, consumables and implants, stents, coils and grafts.
A total of 940 paediatric cardiac patients and 256 adult cardiac patients were successfully operated in Ahmedabad and Rajkot respectively between 2018 and 2022 under the agreement.
