When The Duncan Hospital Community Outreach team first met Jakimu in her village, she was bravely facing advanced breast cancer. With extraordinary skills and dedication, the team began visiting her regularly – cleaning and dressing her wound, supporting her through the challenges, and helping her access the treatment she needed. Their compassion and persistence brought comfort, relief, and a renewed sense of hope.

During a recent visit to The Duncan Hospital, the Trustees of the Duncan Hospital Charitable Trust were fortunate to meet Jakimu and hear firsthand about her journey and the remarkable care she had received from the outreach team.

A few months later, we were delighted to receive an update from the team – news that the Duncan team had helped Jakimu access more advanced cancer treatment. Not only that but the same team had also been able to provide ongoing support for one of her Grandchildren, a bright and joyful child living with cerebral palsy, who is now also receiving ongoing support. We think you’ll agree that the second photo tells a thousand words!

What began as one woman’s health care journey became a story of hope for an entire family. With guidance from Duncan Community Outreach Team, they’ve been connected to the medical, social, and emotional support they need – and the future feels just a little brighter.

Every day, The Duncan Hospital Outreach Team travels beyond the hospital gates, bringing healthcare and hope to families across Bihar. Their work quietly but profoundly changes lives – one visit, one family, one story at a time.

Your support helps make stories like Jakimu’s possible. Donate to the Duncan Hospital Charitable Trust today.

100% of donations go to the The Duncan Hospital

The post Hope Beyond the Hospital Gates: Jakimu’s Story appeared first on tdhct.

Those in this group live with disabilities themselves or care for loved ones who do. Today’s visit is about more than medical care. The team is sharing advice, encouragement, physical equipment, and information on where families can find support – health and rehabilitation help from the Duncan Hospital itself, plus local government schemes, that they might not otherwise hear of.

For families raising children with cerebral palsy and other disabilities, these visits bring connection, understanding, and hope. They remind each person that they are not alone – that help and community can grow even in the more remote of Bihar’s communities.

Through its Community Teams, The Duncan Hospital continues to walk alongside families like these – building awareness, offering care, and helping them access the support they deserve.

Your support helps make these visits possible – bringing health, hope, and dignity to communities like these.

Please consider making a donation through the Duncan Hospital Charitable Trust – we guarantee that 100% of your donations go to The Duncan Hospital.

Donate here now

The post Stronger Together: How Duncan Community Outreach Teams Brings Connection and Care to Remote Villages appeared first on tdhct.

Earlier this year, and before the scale of the coronavirus pandemic was fully apparent, Professor Gordon Mackay and his wife Jackie visited the Duncan Hospital in Bihar, India. Here he reflects on developments at the hospital as it continues to grow to meet the needs of its surrounding communities.

Jackie and I were delighted to have the opportunity to revisit The Duncan in February of this year. It was a special occasion as it was for the official opening of the new MacDonald Block which was understandably a cause for significant celebration. It also allowed us to catch up with our close friends and see the progress made by the hospital since our last visit. We attended on this occasion with good friends from Sydney, Australia, Mark and Debbie Edinburg, who had recently retired from running a busy surgical practice. We had a lovely welcome when we arrived, having travelled via Kathmandu, and although there were some difficulties on the border, we were able to enter pretty much as planned.

As always, we were very warmly welcomed, and Saira and Prabhu took time to show us around the Campus, highlighting the recent developments and the exciting plans for the future going forward. We initially visited the Mother & Child Block, which now has an extensive solar panel system on the roof which helps to support the Labour Room and the Paediatric Intensive Care facility. There are also plans for a CT scanner to be installed, although the solar input will be insufficient for the associated energy demands. Also, as the state of Bihar develops, regulation has become tighter and expectations for effluent and sewage treatment have increased. The hospital has therefore developed a four-stage integrated system and we’re told that fish can now swim in the effluent from the hospital. Truly quite miraculous considering the limitations of the location.

The Management Team took time to share their ambitious plans for The Duncan going forward and were looking forward to the development of the Nursing School and the associated accommodation.

The hospital has a seasonal level of activity, and this was a quieter point in the calendar, but the Mother & Child facility was still extremely busy.

Jackie and I were delighted to cut the ribbon at the official opening of The MacDonald Block, which acknowledged the generous contribution from the MacDonald family and their charity towards the support of The Duncan Hospital. We also moved into the community and had an opportunity to see how community services are evolving. We were very impressed by the community Dental facility and antenatal support, along with some of the associated educational outreach which addresses issues of education, hygiene and in particular, the well-being of young females. The Management Team took time to share their ambitious plans for The Duncan going forward and were looking forward to the development of the Nursing School and the associated accommodation. There is now a detailed plan for up to 2024 for completion of the next phase of this ambitious project. The plans and drawings certainly looked very impressive.

As always, the hospitality was very generous and we were inundated with traditional home cooking which we thoroughly enjoyed. With the departure of Saira, whose contribution has been immeasurable, Prabhu has now taken over the management of the hospital. We know, therefore, that The Duncan remains in excellent hands as they face the current and future challenges. Following an emotional farewell, we completed our trip with a day trekking in the foothills around Kathmandu, already looking forward to our next visit to The Duncan.

The post Developments a-plenty – visit to The Duncan in Feb 2020 appeared first on tdhct.