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Creating health and education access with IndusInd Bank

With the support of IndusInd Bank Ltd., Perkins India brought nutritional support and assistive devices to 197 children -- further enabling their access to health and education.

Girl sits smiling in a wheelchair

Fitment of Devices

Boy is fitted with hearing aid

Just as every child is unique, their assistive devices should be also. We assessed every child to determine what device can best support their access to learning. In many cases, we take precise measurements so that we can customize the device to their size. This careful assessment and measurement ensures the best support for each child.

Capacity development

Project execution teams are key for reaching children and providing intervention to children. With the influx of new devices for 133 children, our experts at Perkins India trained 19 team members from 3 of our partner organizations on how to introduce new devices to children, and how to incorporate these assistive devices into their daily routines.

Group of educators sit in a circle

Distributing devices

Group of parents pushing children in wheelchairs outside a school

We held 6 camps to distribute 256 assistive devices to 133 children in Lucknow, Sitapur and Mathura. Many families came carrying children in their arms or on their back, but left filled with excitement while pushing their child in a wheelchair or accompanying them with a walker.

One father expressed his happiness by sharing, “What we saw at the camp was that our lives can be better.  At this camp me and my family learned about handling, care, and use of KFO and AFO [orthosis devices]. During my initial center visits, they first told me about these kinds of aids and appliances, and later they took the measurement. Now I am very happy — we got KFO, now my son is ready to face the world.”

What we saw at the camp was that our lives can be better… Now my son is ready to face the world.”

Father at distribution camp

Side-by-side with parents

Mother and father adjust supportive chair for their son who is sitting in the chair

The addition of assistive devices in the life of a child with disabilities brings a sigh of relief for parents. But the novelty of these new devices means the child and the family needs to learn how to incorporate them into their daily lives — at home and in the community. Our project teams consistently follow up with each family at home to provide the needed guidance as they learn how to best utilize their new devices to enable their child’s learning.

Enabling environments

With the support of IndusInd Bank Ltd., we were able to supply 4 intervention centres with new equipment and educational supplies — further opening possibilities for children to learn through play. These 4 centres will be accessed by up to 400 children throughout the year.

Children and teacher playing with a large inflatable ball

Prioritizing nutrition

Woman and child receive a ration kit

Children with disabilities experience disproportionately higher rates of malnutrition — especially among poorest households. Providing nutritional support to these families reduces inequalities in nutrition, and often acts as an incentive for continued participation. Through this short-term project, we provided 164 families with ration kits to last them up to 3 months.

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