PODILI RURAL HOSPITAL Design of a rural hospital in the district of Podili - Andhra Pradesh
Vro Italy was born in 2005 following our meeting with Father Michael Antony Windey, a Belgian jesuit who dedicated all his life to the preservation of the rural Indian village. Any description of the work that Father Michael Windey has achieved in all the years of his life would not be enough to make the image of a charisma so wonderfully tenacious and tireless. Windey founded in late 1960 the VRO, which stands for Village Reconstruction Organization. Since then more than 540 villages are rebuilt, not only in the sense of the physical building but also and above all, that of sociability. Value and dignity of the human person, possibility for the individual to develop their skills through himself and through community life are the principles that underpin the VRO program, which has its roots in the Christian social philosophy and that of the Gandhian Sarvodaya. For all of us, Father Windey has been a spiritual and practical guidance, and now more than ever, we feel a moral duty to continue his mission that has dramatically influenced our outlook on life. 2
Better villages for a better world Father Michael Anthony Windey 3
A PROJECT... A DREAM... A PROMISE Imagine getting the flu, take out a common intestinal virus or may be pregnant a few days before giving birth. All these situations are manageable, common to everyone and that does not scare us. Imagine, however, not able to contact any hospital because it simply does not exist, nor a pharmacy or a clinic or a first aid center nearby. Imagine that a doctor comes to visit you at home and he will prescribe medication, but this cannot help you because you have no way of reaching a pharmacy too far, or enough money. Suddenly, everything that for you was trivial and solvable so far could become a problem of enormous magnitude, even a matter of life or death. 4
The situation described is not too far from our eyes: this is the real life of many Indians who live in rural villages. This is the reason why we at VRO Italy have a dream and a concrete plan to present: the construction of a hospital in Podili, in Andhra Pradesh. For many Indians this structure will be a flower in the desert and provide a glimmer of hope for those who have so far resigned to such a death unjust and unnecessary. Ensuring the safety of these people being welcomed and cared for at any time will mean radically change their lives. This project reflects the principles that Father Windey argued in his programs of health promotion: to build health centers in villages complementary alternative of health programs already in existence, but in many cases insufficient. 5
PODILI, ANDRHA PRADESH Podili is a small village in the administrative district of Prakasam in Andhra Pradesh State in Southeast India. The hospital will be built in a rural area and free of any service made available by the Diocese of Nellore AP the wish of Bishop Dr. Moses D. Prakasam. 6
A SIMPLE HOSPITAL... A RADICAL CHANGE 7
8 GENERAL PLANIMETRY
PODILI RURAL HOSPITAL The building design consists of a U-shaped structure with plant and central courtyard, a small isolated body is used to sanitation. The roof is flat. The building is oriented with the main north-south axis in order to ensure better thermal efficiency in an area characterized by climatic conditions often difficult. The overall site plan was designed to limit the effects of direct solar radiation and the monsoon winds that can affect the structure. It is designed for greater drilling of the surface of the facades in order to ensure natural ventilation. Office is located in the courtyard garden in the open air, surrounded by a colonnade that guarantees covered access to all premises. The whole hospital has raised approximately 70 cm from the ground to be protected by the abundant monsoon rains and ensure a healthier environment for all. 9
ENTRY Both main pedestrian entrance and emergency room are located to the South. The viability of emergency vehicles has been designed to ensure a sufficient flow of vehicles to the area covered with the arrival of emergency. 10
DIRECTION AND ACCEPTANCE The office of acceptance is near the main entrance, allowing the identification and the reception of patients who will be accommodated by the structure. Additional space inside is dedicated for the direction and for the archive with a room for the night staff during shifts. FIRST AID AND SURGERY First aid is directly linked, through a filter zone, to the surgery centre; this structural organization will allow performing medical interventions in optimal conditions. The entrance to the medical staff is provided by an interior corridor in order to take the necessary health precautions before intervening on patients. 11
HOSPITAL STAY AND MATERNITY The two rooms of hospital stay and maternity ward are placed next to the emergency room and surgery to facilitate the basic operations of hospitalization and possible interventions. Climatic conditions explain, however, the placement of these rooms on the East side of the building: the sun rises in the east front radiating early in the day and not in the afternoon. The three rooms provide a total of 23 beds. Between these two units there is a room for nurses to aid. CONSULTING ROOMS The west side of the structure is occupied by three local clinics for general or specialist visits. Patients can wait in the waiting covered patio. The clinics will thus constitute a reference point of contact in case of illness or simple medical disorders. 12
DRUG STORE AND KITCHEN The warehouses for the storage of medicines and hospital supplies and a small kitchen, which will provide basic nutrition support for patients and staff, have the entrance from the courtyard. The external access will ensure that the external loading and unloading will take place without interfering with the internal operations of the hospital. RESTROOMS The bathrooms are separate from the main building of the hospital to minimize any type of bacterial transmission. The area consists of two parts, one for men and one for women with two opposite entrances. In total there are 6 toilets and 4 showers. Air vents mounted on the outside walls near the roof soffit, provided adequate insect screens, will allow natural ventilation. There will be a special focus on water treatment, collection and disposal of clinical waste, such as carriers of infection and contamination of crops and groundwater. 13
FRONTS AND SECTION In projecting this rural hospital we have given special attention to mechanisms that will guarantee the basic functions of a medical support center. Our effort intends to supply necessary medical assistance in this Indian region which is lacking at the moment and create therefore a valuable service for the entire population of the area. Obviously, the nature of a project like this is ethic and non-profit. However, to cope with eventual critical economical situations we need to guarantee self-sustainability in rural hospital so as to overcome all of its problems, including economic that will inevitably rise. We want to base this hospital on a simple concept: whoever receives a benefit can make a donation according to their own possibilities, without compromising their needy conditions. This ethic principle will promote a responsible use of the service, allowing people to appreciate our intervention; in this way, according to the reciprocity principle, even those who cannot contribute for the maintenance of the structure may also benefit of health care and medical treatments. To accomplish these positive interventions the active solidarity of donors is crucial. Their support would help not only Indians who live in rural villages and whose poverty is unimaginable for us, but also represents an opportunity to create a different world. Our current age, where to learn news from around the world we just need to wait for the evening news, it needs to flourish again, recreating the values at the core of human history: the poor villages of India, as all the rural areas of the world, will point us towards a new fairer way to achieve the spiritual survival of human society: Villages will save the world. 14
The estimated cost for the building construction is 140.000 ($ 190.000) The estimated cost for providing basic health care is 110.000 ($ 150.000) The total estimated project cost is 250.000 ($ 340.000) 15
VRO ITALIA www.vroitalia.org arch. Ezio Giardino e Sig.ra Giovanna Campia eziogiardino@libero.it arch. Lino Diurno linodiurno@gmail.com How you can help us: These are the bank details to transfer money: VRO ITALIA ONLUS Banca Popolare di Novara Ag. 4 Torino IBAN: IT37 K 05608 01004 0000 0002 0223