Billionaire Believer
November 27, 2007
“I’m not doing my philanthropic work out of any kind of guilt, or any need to create good public relations. I’m doing it because I can afford to do it, and I believe in it.”
–George Soros, creator of Open Society Institute
December 3, 2007 at 10:43 pm
My family started a free medical clinic in 1998 in India. It has now grown to a 70-bed, 3-story free hospital. We continue to provide the major support for it. There are two satellite medical clinics associated with it, and village medical camps are conducted once a week.
Regarding the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the hospital staff (along with help from churches) conduct seminars in churches, schools, colleges, and social gatherings and distributes HIV/AIDS literature in 22 languages of India on the streets, in marketplaces, and door-to-door (3.6 million booklets printed, thus far). We estimate that the HIV/AIDS message has reached more than 35 million people. The literature is partially subsidized by an Indian State Government, and we have been commended by them for the work we have done. The hospital also provides antiretroviral (ARV) treatment as the funds are available.
Unfortunately, we are essentially at a standstill on being able to continue the HIV/AIDS literature work and ARV drug distribution in India because of insufficient funds.
In addition to India, we have done a limited literature distribution effort in 6 sub-Saharan countries of Africa.
(Note: The website listed above is in the process of being updated. We are approaching 2 million patient visits since 1998, and we now have 2 HIV/AIDS counselors on the hospital staff.)