EHA

EHA is a fellowship of institutions and individuals that exists to transform communities through caring, with primary focus on the poor and marginalized.

Introduction
Emmanuel Hospital Association (EHA) was founded in 1970 as an indigenous Christian health and development agency serving the people of North India. Its primary focus is the poor, largely in rural areas. With a catchment population of nearly seven million, EHA treats more than 500,000 patients each year in some of India's most needy areas.

Origins
The origins of the Emmanuel Hospital Association can be found in the late 1960s when a group of Indian and international leaders and health care workers met together to look for appropriate ways to bring about long-term sustainability of some 13 former mission hospitals, founded by the workers from the UK, USA and Australia, who were facing an uncertain future because of paucity of funds and the difficulty of obtaining visas for overseas health professionals. EHA's founding 13 hospitals have since grown to a network of 20 hospitals and 30 community health and development programmes & AIDS projects.

Aims
EHA is committed to the transformation of communities with programmes that invest in the health and well being of everyone, irrespective of caste, creed or race. It aims to focus on the development and empowerment of women and the health and nurture of the under fives.

In the 1990s, EHA had sharpened its vision for growth by replication of innovative programmes in areas such as HIV/AIDS, slum renewal, community dentistry, reproductive and child health and functional literacy. The underlying aim is that these programmes should be sustainable and build capacity in the local communities to bring about an on-going change in the quality of life with decreasing dependence on outside resources. In order to achieve these aims EHA works in partnership with the government, voluntary agencies and other organisations, both nationally and internationally. Underlying causes of poor health are addressed through literacy, socio-economic programmes and income generation activities.

Objectives, Activities & Distinctives
EHA's combination of essential clinical services and primary health care and development tackles the health needs in poverty stricken rural areas. In order to provide long-term solutions to long-term problems, it also attempts to tackle the underlying causes that will result in elimination rather than alleviation of poverty and poor health.

The poorest of the poor rarely access health care facilities even at a charitable hospital - therefore EHA is committed to promotive and preventative health programmes. A core activity is training local village women in areas from basic health and hygiene to antenatal care of pregnant women, which together can transform a whole community. Added to this are non-medical interventions in health. Wherever literacy programmes are in place one of the first effects is a fall in the infant mortality rate. Teaching and training in income generation skills and co-operative banking schemes allows villagers to resolve problems in their own way, giving them hope for the future. The long-term result is a community with increased capacity to deal with the challenges it faces and able to enjoy sustainability in their own development

EHA's commitment is to responsiveness, innovation and flexibility, as was shown in 1999 with 2 medical relief teams serving Kosovan refugee camps in Albania under UNHCR and more recently in Orissa following the mega cyclone. Here again these were the result of consortium partnerships, linking with the UK and the USA, brokered by and with management input from the EHA (UK).

Resources
EHA is 80% self-supporting of its budget of just over two million pounds Sterling, with not less than 10% being given as charity to the poor and in a number of places a much higher percentage. Currently 20% of the budget is met from international sources for community health and development, replacement of worn out equipment, the launch of new and innovative programmes and associated research. Growth by replication will require the investment in a new generation of leaders and the forging of new an innovative partnerships within India and internationally. EHA’s greatest resource is its dedicated 1500 staff of whom about 156 are doctors.