Continuing its fight against COVID-19, Anant National University has tied up with various government bodies, corporates, political leaders, and non-governmental organisations to set-up COVID-19 recovery facilities across the country. After the success of the recovery centre in Kerala, AnantU has set-up three more centres in Mumbai – a 100-bed facility at Dongri’s Najam Baug, 250-bed facility at St Xavier’s College and 350-bed facility at MP Mills Compound.
These facilities are equipped with a cost-effective alternative such as laminated corrugated cardboard beds, medicine boxes and separators, designed and manufactured by our in-house team of experts. These beds are sturdy, waterproof, quick to develop and can be disinfected. The cardboard separators allow patients isolation and dignity in large halls. Furthermore, our core team partnered with various agencies to procure oxygen cylinders, shared syringe pumps and suction machines from local vendors at competitive prices to make treatment affordable.
The initiative was conceptualised by the AnantU team consisting of sustainability experts, urban planners, built environment professionals and designers. The team drafted a complete implementation plan and submitted a proposal to the Prime Minister’s office and private builders to enable rapid scaling up of COVID-19 recovery facilities by refurbishing existing infrastructure to provide temporary hospitals with ICUs and quarantine centres. These centres cater to all segments of society and will treat patients with mild symptoms of COVID-19.
The first recovery centre, fully funded by Anant National University, was set-up in partnership with the Kerala government. A large conference hall in the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Development Studies in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, was converted into a 20-bed temporary hospital with ICU facility. The facility is equipped with hospital-grade rubber mattresses, semi-fowler hospital beds, medical IV stands, medicine boxes, syringe pumps, suction machines and adequate oxygen supply to cater to COVID-19 patients’ wild mild symptoms. This was followed by three other centres set-up in different parts of Mumbai.
AnantU has partnered with Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and converted Dongri’s Najam Baug, a community centre for the Dawoodi Bohras, into a 100-bed facility. Additionally, it has partnered with corporates and political leaders to convert St Xavier’s College, CSMT into a 250-bed facility. It has also converted a vacant 22-storey building of Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) into a COVID-19 recovery centre in south Mumbai. Located in the MP Mills Compound, Tardeo, the centre has 70 1-BHK flats where the first floor is dedicated to healthcare professionals while each of the 70 flats has five beds – 2 each in the hall and bedroom and one in the kitchen.
Till date, AnantU has set up a total of 720 beds across the country. Completed in a short duration of 3-5 days, these facilities demonstrate the importance of strong, coordinated efforts between public and private sectors in addressing the current healthcare crisis. The initiative has garnered appreciation from various stakeholders and has received massive coverage across multiple media houses.
