Smile on Wheels: Mobile Health Care in Kolkata Slums

Project: Smile on Wheels
Partner Organisation: Kolkata Police Welfare Centre (KPWFC)

Smile Foundation under its national level health care programme has initiated the innovative mobile hospital programme named 'Smile on Wheels' to set pioneering standards in giving the best and the most affordable health care services to the poor and the needy of the country.

Kolkata Police has joined hands with Smile Foundation under its innovative 'Smile on Wheels' programme in Kolkata, West Bengal. The esteemed Kolkata Police Welfare Centre (KPWFC) as part of its ongoing social welfare initiatives has become the implementing partner for Smile Foundation's mobile clinic programme called "Smile on Wheels".

Ms Sutapa Mukherjee. President, KPWFC, says, “We welcome Smile Foundation's mobile hospital initiative in the state and commit our full support on behalf of the Government of West Bengal to the joint-venture.”

Kolkata Police Welfare Centre (KPWFC) is a non profit organization which was initiated in March 1973 as an autonomous body to look after the welfare of the police personnel and their families. 

The project provides necessary services such as OPD, Ante-natal, post-natal services, identification of difficult pregnancy and referral for institutional care, Immunization - Mother & children, Minor surgery, BP examination, X-ray, ECG, First Aid, Distribution of Iron Folic tablets, Vit-A Prophylaxis, Treatment of mal-nutrient cases, etc. The project also has provision for referral services to credible hospitals and specialists.

The Smile on Wheels vans have been covering 2-3 villages every day, within a radius of 20-50 kms from its base. With preference given to the issues of women and child health, the project has reached 4 lakhs people in and around 150 identified villages across five Indian states in its first phase.

With enthusiastic response received from the five states during the first phase of the implementation of the programme, the foundation wishes to partner with more organizations to realize the aim of running 30 such vans across the country. This financial year alone, Smile Foundation has projected to add another 5 'Smile on Wheels' across India.

Smile on Wheels is being implemented in five states under the fist phase. The respective partners in these states to implement the projects are Sevadham Trust (Pune, Maharashtra), Berojgar Mahila Sewa Samiti (Bhilai, Chhattisgarh), Orissa Institute of Medical Research and Health Services – OMRAH (Cuttack, Orissa), Ambuja Cement Foundation (Roorkee, Uttarakhand), and Kolkata Police Welfare Centre (KPWFC, West Bengal)

The second phase of Smile on Wheels covers the slum populations of Delhi and Chennai cities.