VOICES VELLORE of

CMC Advances Doctor & Nurse Training in Maternal and Neonatal Care with the Opening of State-of-the-Art Simulation Labs Funded by USAID/ASHA

ASim Lab set up with grant funds from the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Vellore CMC Foundation aims to reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality and morbidity in India.

On January 21, 2023, CMC and the Vellore CMC Foundation paid tribute to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) for its financial contribution toward the opening of a new Advanced Simulation Laboratory Center at the Christian Medical College (CMC) in Vellore. This new lab will serve as a training facility for CMC doctors, nurses, and emergency medicine personnel, offering courses in maternal and neonatal care that will use the latest technologies that simulate mother and infant emergencies, basic and advanced nursing procedures, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

The opening of this new training center was supported by a $1 million grant awarded through USAID’s American Schools and Hospitals Abroad (ASHA) program. The ASHA program was established to help build bridges of understanding and friendship between the people of the United States of America and India. At an inauguration ceremony, which was attended by ASHA’s India Health Office Director, Sangita Patel, Dr. Margaret Kumar, the Vellore CMC Foundation’s Chairperson, and CMC Director, Dr. Vikram Mathews, all parties celebrated the opening of two new simulation labs, one at CMC’s main hospital and another at the CMC College of Nursing. The tribute to USAID/ASHA was held in the newly renovated Dr. Paul Brand Building, located on CMC’s main campus in the downtown area of Vellore.

USAID/India Health Office Director,

Sangita Patel stated, “USAID aims to build upon existing evidence and best practices, as well as to catalyze new ideas, partnerships, and approaches. With this catalytic grant that has facilitated the setting up of the Advanced Simulation Lab Center and advanced labor and delivery room tools at the Christian Medical College, Vellore, USAID aims to accelerate reductions in maternal, newborn, and child mortality and morbidity by increasing the commitment and capacity of locally led institutions and providers to offer high-quality, integrated health care in the state of Tamil Nadu.”

Please Join Us For Our Upcoming Events

MAY 11: 5th Annual

Ecumenical Leadership Forum: “Strengthening The Church Through Historical Relationships And Mutual Ministries Of Compassion”

MAY 19: Virtual Lecture

Series With Sujata Srinivasan, Connecticut Public Radio's Senior Health Reporter

JUNE 11: Cultivation Reception

Hosted by Drs. Honorine Ward and Shiv Pillai in Lexington, MA

JUNE 14: Cultivation Reception

Hosted by Krishen Mehta in New York, NY

JUNE 15-18: 42nd GOTC in Rochester, MN

JUNE 23: Virtual Lecture Series

With Dr. John C. Oommen

JULY 22: The Foundation’s First Ever 5k Fun Run In Edison, NJ

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Message From The President

Dear Friends of CMC and the Vellore CMC Foundation,

I am pleased to report that 2023 marks the 75-year anniversary of the founding of the Vellore CMC Foundation, which has already created opportunities for us to celebrate the generosity and accomplishments of our donors, directors, and staff members, dating back to 1948. Following in the footsteps of CMC founder, Dr. Ida Scudder, we continue to nurture the Foundation’s relationships with the U.S. faith-based community, with each member of the Scudder family who is a descendant of Dr. John & Harriet Scudder, with CMC’s U.S. alumni community, with those people amongst our donor community who we recognize as friends, and with today’s leaders and directors of CMC Vellore.

To date, we have hosted two virtual lecture series (VLS) events – one that paid tribute to the extraordinary accomplishments of CMC’s medical scientists over the years and another that paid tribute to the Scudder family members whose missionary achievements paved the way for Ida’s Scudder’s founding of CMC. Throughout the remainder of the year, we will organize eight more similar VLS events and also host the Foundation’s 5th Annual (Virtual) Ecumenical Leadership Forum, focusing on the importance of instilling compassion into all that we do as servant leaders and supporters of CMC’s mission.

We have six (6) in-person celebratory events scheduled for 2023 beginning with an intimate donor cultivation event scheduled for April 27th in Washington DC. This event will be followed by three similar events taking place in Boston, New York and Atlanta. We are also co-hosting a 5K fun run/walk in Edison, NJ on July 22nd, and organizing a gala in New York City in early November. We will be sharing details regarding each of the above in the days and weeks to come..

At the start of the year, we launched our CMC Compassionate | CMC Strong Campaign, with the hope of raising $1.25 million to support CMC’s early-stage research, student education and community-based patient care activities - to date, we have raised more than $56,000. I am hopeful that each of our donors will help us reach this lofty and vitally important 75th anniversary goal.

As always, my hope is that you find the contents of this edition of Voices of Vellore to be both informative and inspirational.

Sincerely,

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