It was a Tuesday in late May, when Dr. Tanmay Singh, Noora Health Program Manager, led me up seven flights of white marble stairs to the Cardiothoracic Ward of Jayadeva Hospital in Bangalore.
Here we were greeted by Nursing Incharges, Sr. Hema Latha and Sr. Shantakumari.
Sr. Hema Latha and Sr. Shantakumari described the day-to-day operations of the ward in hushed voices, as their nursing colleague, Sr. Latha B. was facilitating a Noora Health training session for patients and families in the adjacent space.
We then had the opportunity to observe Sr. Latha B. engaging with patients and families during the latter part of the training session. It was clear that she had the complete attention of her audience, a group of 20–30 cardiac patients and their families. After the lively discussion came to an end, a couple of caregivers approached Sr. Latha with additional questions. One of whom was Mrs. Vishwanath.
Mrs. Vishwanath, a local Bangalorean, was in the hospital with her husband who would soon be undergoing triple vessel heart surgery, and their youngest son.
Mrs. Vishwanath introduced us to her husband and son, and began sharing reflections on the training session. She mentioned that prior to the session, her biggest concern regarding her husband’s surgery and the caregiving she would provide throughout his recovery, was mobility. Specifically, she said, “How are we going to be able to climb the stairs to our second-floor home?”
And the training session addressed this very concern. “We now know exactly when and how we can do this safely”, she said.
Because of Noora Health’s training programs, families like the Vishwanaths transition home from the hospital with confidence. As a result, return hospital visits and the incidence of preventable complications are reduced.