Medical Alumni Health Care Assistance Fund

Dear Friends,

 

In 2017, a few of our alumni got together and took the initiative to institute a Medical Alumni – Health Care Assistance Fund to help alumni who have been serving for decades in remote, resource poor settings to meet their personal health care needs, especially when their own income and resources do not meet the rising costs of health care in India today.

 

This was set up as a fund supported by the Alumni, for the Alumni to be managed by the Alumni, along with the administration in CMC.

 

The Fund is available to undergraduate and postgraduate Medical Alumni who have committed their lives to serving in areas of need, when they seek medical treatment in CMC for long periods. While a sizeable portion of treatment costs are borne by the institution, we as alumni cannot expect the institution to cover all the bills. When alumni need financial help to cover their medical bills, batchmates, friends or peers pass a hat around, as discreetly as possible for a collection. This could be, at the very least, a humiliating experience for an Alumnus in need.

 

The assistance from this Fund will be dispensed by a committee comprising of members of the Alumni Association and extramural Alumni, appointed by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Association, along with the administration of CMC. The final decision on eligibility will be made by this committee based on criteria which have been laid down.

 

The aim is to create an Endowment Fund of Rupees 1 Crore, the interest from which will be able to fund the medical needs of Alumni who work in resource limited settings for their entire lifetime. We currently have reached only about 60% of the target and are hoping to receive donations from Alumni worldwide to build it up.

 

Over the past few years, the Fund has been availed by 5 deserving alumni who had to undergo long term medical treatment for major illnesses.

 

At this time, we look forward to donations from the Alumni to improve the Health Care Assistance Fund so that more Alumni who require financial assistance can be supported. The contributions can be made through the link below on CMC’s Official Giving website –

https://bit.ly/Medical_Assist_Fund.

Donations can also be made through the Friends of Vellore (FOV). If you are not an Indian passport holder, the above donate link will automatically re-direct you to the appropriate FOV webpage.

 

After making the donation, please send the details by email to both the Development Office (dev.office@cmcvellore.ac.in) and the Alumni Office (alumni@cmcvellore.ac.in) specifying date of transfer, amount, reference/transaction number and specifying that the donation is towards the Medical Alumni – Health Care Assistance Fund.

 

Looking forward to generous donations from Alumni around the world to this fund so that Alumni who need it may avail this opportunity and benefit from affordable healthcare. It might be a batchmate, a friend, a peer or even an absolute stranger tied to us, across the years, by Ribbons, Silver and Blue.

 

On behalf of the Alumni Association, we would like thank once again all those involved in setting up this Fund. We hope to continue to support, through your generous donations, our alumni who have lived up to the motto of our institution, giving their lifetime in the service of the poor and the marginalized, and now have healthcare needs requiring our assistance.

 

Smitha Jasper	Anil Kuruvilla
Secretary	President