Mukul Madhav Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of Finolex Industries Limited, has set up state-of-the-art neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) at two civic hospitals in Pune. The 12-bed units at the Late Rajiv Gandhi Hospital in Yerawada and Chandumama Sonwane Maternity Hospital in Bhawani Peth were inaugurated on May 5 by Guardian Minister Girish Bapat, Mayor Mukta Tilak, among others.
Ritu Chhabria, managing trustee, Mukul Madhav Foundation, and director of Finolex Industries Limited, said the intensive care units have also been dedicated to Late Prahlad Chhabria, founder, Finolex. “The NICUs comply with global clinical standards and are equipped with advanced technology to facilitate specialised care to infants. We have chosen hospitals run by the Pune Municipal Corporation as they offer free healthcare to pregnant women, labourers and patients belonging to economically weaker sections of the society,” said Chhabria.
The setting up of the NICUs was part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Mukul Madhav Foundation and the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) in December 2017. The foundation had earlier set up a 59-bed NICU at the Sassoon Hospital in Pune on April 16, 2017, in collaboration with Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati Trust. The NICU has been instrumental in reducing the infant mortality rate. The success of Sassoon Hospital NICU set things up for the PPP MoU between the foundation and the PMC.
The PMC has taken care of the partial infrastructure — air-conditioning, partial electrification and all life-saving modern equipment and manpower at the NICUs.
The NICUs boast of advanced equipment like radiant warmers, phototherapy machines, oxygen cylinders and Bubble CPAP machines, among other facilities. The units will become fully operational by May 10.
Earlier, the foundation had organised a specialised four-month training programme for 50 nurses and 10 doctors of the PMC hospitals at Sassoon, Bharati and Deenanath Hospitals.