Dinesh Gundu Rao, Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Government of Karnataka presented the ‘Gift of Life’ certificates to two children who were treated at Sri Madhusudan Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (SMSIMSR) at the valedictory session of the Global Health Conference 2023, organised by SMSIMSR, India’s first free private rural medical college in association with All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi on December 9, 2023 at Sathya Sai Grama at Chikkaballapur district in Karnataka.

“Gift of Life’ is a ceremony which was instituted by Sri Madhusudan Sai across all his hospitals, where those who are saved through surgeries are celebrated. The hospital provided baby Malashree sepsis NICU management in addition to pre-term birth management care. The child was kept in the NICU for 26 days, absolutely free of all costs! Six-year-old Krishna Seervi hailing from Bagepalli, Chikkaballapur underwent an ASD device closure. Both the children were discharged, hale and hearty and look forward to live a healthy life. 

In his address the Minister said “The work is simply astounding and setting up a private medical college in record-breaking time span is laudable. It isn’t easy to achieve such a huge milestone in such a limited duration. Even for the government, to achieve such an enormous task of establishing a medical college and hospital is difficult. I was awe struck to see the seamless functioning of the hospital and college here during my walkthrough. We need people who are willing and dedicated to run such institutions and thus able to achieve such substantial outcomes. What is something impossible is been made possible here!”

The Minister further said, “SMSIMSR has given a ray of hope to the entire humanity. The people and work being done reinvigorates the hope in humanity. Government facilities have always faced multiple challenges in terms of quality and delivery of healthcare. This Institution has achieved something which any government has failed to. The number of free surgeries and services provided absolutely free of cost is truly inspiring.”

“I would love to extend all the support from the government and looking forward for meaningful collaborations in making healthcare accessible and affordable to the public,” concluded the Minister.

As part of the valedictory session, a fireside chat show was held where noted former cricketer Sunil Gavaskar posed many questions about the ethos of ‘compassionate healthcare’, which is the model of all the hospitals which have been established by Sri Madhusudan Sai (Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Heart Care Hospitals, Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Mother and Child Hospitals, Sri Sathya Sai Sarla Memorial Hospital and the Medical College), joint partnerships and collaborations, the concept of universalisation of healthcare, etc.

The two days conference collectively embarked on a journey of exploration, knowledge-sharing, and collaboration in the pursuit of advancing global healthcare. ‘Augmenting synergies for Universal Healthcare’ was a pivotal event that promised to shape the future of healthcare through collaborative efforts and innovative solutions. By bringing together stakeholders from diverse backgrounds, the conference inspired a transformative change, forging a path towards a more inclusive, patient-centric, sustainable, affordable and accessible healthcare landscape.